On a Starless Night
by Dagas Isa
Summary: As the stars above blink out one-by-one, Sora and the others journey through the worlds. There is no Keyblade to help them, and sometimes it seems that 'before it's too late' was a few minutes ago. Can they hang on until the last star burns out?
1. The First Dream

On a Starless Night  
A Kingdom Hearts Fanfiction by Chibigenius  
  
Disclaimer: KH is not mine. I am but poor college student. Do not sue. Okay. Thanks.  
  
Part One: The First Dream  
  
_I've been having weird thoughts lately, like is any of this real or not?_  
  
Where was he?  
  
Unnatural green light blinded the boy as he opened his eyes. He squinted, trying to keep as much of the unwelcome illumination out of them as possible. Slowly his eyes adjusted to the world around him only to be greeted with – birds? They all flew off, scattering in all directions and conjuring a wind as the boy picked himself up from the ground.  
  
The surface he stood upon was glassy, primarily green around the edges, and the cause of the greenish tint of the light. The surface extended for about fifty feet in all directions until it dropped off into complete darkness. Overall, the boy felt as if he were standing on a stained glass window. He hesitated, afraid that even the lightest step would break the glass and send him falling into a void.  
  
_So much to do, so little time... Don't be afraid.... Now, step forward. Can you do it?_  
  
A voice? The boy looked around for a source of some sort, but to no avail. Wherever he was, it was just him and this strange, bodiless voice that seemed to be more in his head than anywhere else. Trying to hide his uncertainty, he took one step. The platform held his weight, and the boy ran towards the center, closer to the perceived source of the strange voice.  
  
A pedestal rose from the edge of the platform directly in front of him, low and wide for a platform. Light, pure and white, shone down upon it, illuminating some unknown object floating above it.  
  
_If you give it form... It will give you strength._  
  
The boy went to investigate, the voice and his own inner urging compelling him to go forward. He jumped onto the platform and grasped at the object with both hands. At first, it was ephemeral like trying to hold mist in his hands. However, as he held onto it, it solidified. It sharpened as well, cutting into the palm of his left hand. The boy yelped as the blood dripped onto the blade of the newly-formed sword and took his hand from the blade. He would have dropped the sword, except for the strong, almost magnetic force keeping it in his hand.  
  
The pedestal sank in to the ground again, causing the boy to fall back onto the platform, which shattered on impact. The air refused to support his weight, and he tumbled through the darkness. His body straightened itself out, and by the time he landed on another platform, this one mostly blue and with a different picture embedded in it, he managed to land, if roughly, on his feet.  
  
_Your path is set. You gained the power to fight. Use this power to protect yourself and others._  
  
Once the boy had recovered, he swung the sword experimentally. He drew an arc with broad strokes. The weight rested heavily, reassuringly in his hand. A new confidence swept over him. Too soon, though, as he noticed a creature rising from the glass beneath him. Empty yellow eyes focused on him. Made of the shadow, it slithered along the floor, rising only when it was close enough to touch the boy.   
  
The shadow creature struck, and the boy instinctively raised his sword to block. Steel strained against claws. Trying to plant his foot into something and steady himself, the boy struggled to keep the claws away. In a burst of strength, the boy deflected the claws and moved in swiftly to strike. He forced the Shadow back in three strokes of the sword, and the fourth one caught the Shadow, tearing it to pieces that immediately disappeared in a puff of black smoke.  
  
_There will be times you have to fight. Keep your light burning strong._  
  
The voice distracted the boy, causing him to look up into the void again for the its source. Light? What did that have to do with fighting? He tried to ask, but his throat remained closed and dry. Instead he fixed his gaze up towards the darkness above him as if expecting to draw an answer from that.  
  
_Behind you!_  
  
The boy turned just as another Shadow prepared to attack. Cold claws barely scraped his cheek before he dodged and swung his sword up to catch it in the belly. It shuffled away, zig-zagging in many directions as it tried to determine another angle to attack from.  
  
Another swift flash of black, and the boy whipped around. The Shadow again. No, a different Shadow. There were more than one now, at least three others that the boy could see, all of them with the same vacant eyes and erratic, shuffling movements. He tensed, crouching into a fighting stance and preparing to fight the Shadows.  
  
As one of the dark creatures struck at the boy, who was prepared this time. He blocked it and drove back the shadow with numerous slashes, the last one hitting home in the Shadow's chest. Two others attacked, but the boy swept around, managing to catch them both with one arc of his sword. One of them leaped forward, slashing the boy across the chest and tearing off a piece of fabric from his black jacket.  
  
He stopped thinking then and let the adrenaline take over. His body remembered the motions of swordplay long forgotten, and with little trouble he forced back the Shadows and destroyed them. Scared and breathing heavily, the boy managed a wide grin of satisfaction as the last Shadow vanished.  
  
For a moment, the boy relaxed as he realized that the Shadows were gone until he noticed the pool of darkness growing underneath his feet. He scrambled away from the puddle, watching it warily as it consumed more of the platform. As he approached the edge, he froze in place, unsure of what to do. The pool swallowed him in his hesitation, and the boy fell again through the void.  
  
He landed, this time on a primarily pink platform. He noticed a theme running through them as he took a closer look. All the designs in the glass were of young women -- princesses from the fairy stories that people told their children when they were little. The boy rose to his feet, drawing his gaze up and noticing a door, white and ornate, farther just past the center of the platform.  
  
Burning with curiosity, the boy approached the door, his eyes widening to take in every detail as he drew closer. He reached out, laying his palm flat against the door. The cool, smooth surface indicated it was made of a stone, possibly marble, and it refused to yield under his pressure.  
  
_I can't open it..._  
  
The boy stepped back, again waiting for the mysterious voice to give some sort of answer or response. The door was important, and what was beyond it even more so. The boy knew it even if he didn't know how. He tried again, pushing harder this time. If it were possible, the door remained even more fixed.  
  
He stepped back and scanned over the rest of the platform. There was nothing there at all, except for the feeling that something was missing. As soon as he acquiesced, the door opened of its own volition, showing nothing but a wall of light. The boy walked through, needing to know where the door led.  
  
The sight on the other side surprised the boy, particularly because of its familiarity -- a wooden fort that he had played on when he was a child on an island not far from his home. The scent of the sea and the breeze blowing through the palms trees brought back memories of a time long lost to him. Old friends waited for him, smiling reassuringly.  
  
_Hold on. The door won't open just yet. First, tell me more about yourself._  
  
The same force that compelled him to continue with this unusual situation hinted that he should talk to all of his old friends, two boys and a girl, and answer their questions.  
  
He approached one of the boys, a young blond-haired rascal with a love for dueling, first.  
  
_What are you afraid of?_  
  
The boy hardly thought about his answer, and the sudden power of his voice startled him.  
  
_Being indecisive._  
  
_Bein' indecisive? Is that really so scary?_  
  
The boy didn't know. Was it? No time to really think about that, though. He moved on to the other boy, this one older, with an accent that the boy could never fathom.  
  
_What do you want outta life?_  
  
The response was immediate and instinctive.  
  
_To be strong._  
  
_To be strong, huh?_  
  
He pondered his priorities and almost thought of changing his answer, but his friend turned away, uninterested in the boy and tossing the blue and white ball he held lazily.  
  
The boy turned then to the last friend who waited for him, a girl with a flipped-up hairstyle and a jump rope that she swung around as a weapon.  
  
_What's most important to you?_  
  
Again, he answered quickly, and as sure as he could be about anything.  
  
_Friendship._  
  
_Is friendship such a big deal?_  
  
No doubt at all on this one as he thought of his friends and what they meant to him. She had turned her attention away from him, leaving the boy in the center of his friends and yet far from their minds. The mysterious voice returned as his friends faded from view, and the boy's vision swept over the island.  
  
_Your journey begins in the dead of night. Your road won't be easy.... The day the door will open is both far off and very, very near. _  
  
The voice faded away and so did the isle of his childhood, bringing him to yet another platform with another princess from a fairy tale. A light shone upon her face, and the boy walked towards it, only to be ambushed by more of the black creatures that he knew as Shadows.  
  
He fought them easily this time, with only a few minor wounds to show for his efforts. As the last Shadow became nothingness, the boy heaved a sigh of relief. The light still beckoned him, and when he stood at the center of its source, it healed him of his injuries and afforded a bit of rest in this strange place.  
  
His inner compulsion told him that he could not remain in this light, not while there were things to do. Stained glass stairs waited for him to ascend to the next phase in this journey. The boy followed the path laid out for him, running up the the stairs without a thought to the pounding of his heart or the heaviness of his breathing. The new platform was primarily yellow time and once again held the image of a princess.  
  
_The closer you get to light, the greater your shadow becomes._  
  
From the edge of the platform, a pool of darkness spread, taking a three dimensional form as the boy watched in horror. A shadow creature formed from the darkness, strangely familiar with its spiked hair and very familiar outfit, a replica of himself made from the substance of darkness. The shape of the darkness stayed like that for only a second before it morphed into a larger, more hideous being, at least a hundred times larger than the shadow creatures he had fought before. He looked for an escape, but nearly falling off the edge of the platform, he found none. Behind him, the stairs vanished into the void, leaving the boy with no place to turn back, and there was nothing that could lead him forward, except fighting.  
  
_But don't be afraid. And don't forget..._  
  
If that were the case, he would fight. The boy drew back his blade and prepared for the fight. His opponent was large and probably powerful, but its size could prove to be awkward, as it could only take a step or two on the platform, if even that, while the boy could scramble all over.  
  
The battle began as the creature pulled its arm back and submerged its hand into the platform, missing the boy by a few inches. Motionless, it made an easy target for the boy to strike at. He swung his sword with abandon, hacking away at the monster's wrist until he noticed the puddle of black liquid swirling beneath him. The little creatures rose from it and attacked the boy, distracting him from the large, still motionless monster looming above him.  
  
He struck back, but not before the claws began to sink into him. The shadow creatures clung to him, the boy trying desperately to shake them off, but to no avail. He flailed and tossed the shadows off in all directions only to find more waiting to attack. He stopped worrying about the still monster and focused exclusively on the creatures tearing him apart so voraciously. He slashed at them, gaining a strange satisfaction as their numbers thinned.  
  
The Shadows stopped spawning, and the boy looked back at the giant. The pool of blackness was gone, and the wrist emerged from the platform. The Shadows had vanished, and the boy tried again to hack at any part of the giant that he could reach. If it was weakening, there was no way for the boy to know.  
  
Backing away from the giant monster, the boy looked up. It leaned back, and the heart-shaped hole in the monster's stomach began to glow purple. A ball of light launched from this hole and descended towards the boy. He dodged, but barely, as he felt the static heat of the energy just out of range of his skin. The second sphere didn't miss, and the boy only had a fraction of a second to react before the light hit him straight on, forcing him back to the far edge of the platform. His body protested through pain as it absorbed the energy from the attack.  
  
Recovering, he readied himself for the next onslaught. He watched as the dark giant moved to submerge his hand into the ground and spawn more Shadows. The boy saw an opportunity. The hands, the legs, all the places that he could normally reach might not do any damage, but the head...the creature was probably weak there. Injured as he was, perhaps he should not take the chance, but he could not afford to not do it. The Shadows on the ground would gang up on him again, and none of the monster's attacks would hit him if he were up there.  
  
The minor tremble that accompanied the fist hitting and going through the platform passed, and the boy calculated his approach. He ran towards the submerged arm and jumped onto the wrist of the creature. His feet searched to grasp the skin that slid under his feet. Every time he thought he had a steady hold on the creature, a muscle would twitch, and his balance would grow just a bit more uncertain. He edged his way up the arm, hoping that he wouldn't fall off with the next step.  
  
When he reached the shoulders, he took the opportunity to steady his balance and ready his sword. Bit by bit, he hacked at the monster, hoping for any effect that he could gain from sticking a comparatively small blade into the neck of a giant.  
  
It felt pain at least. The sudden thrashing of its head told him that, and the boy struck even as he fought to remain perched on its shoulder. The monster suddenly let out a low moan, the first sound that the boy had heard it make. As it tilted its head back, the boy fell from its shoulder, and time seemed to stop as he slowly tumbled down to the platform below. He landed on his back and bruised himself, his head taking most of the damage.  
  
Beneath him, a pool of blackness emerged in the platform, starting at the spot where he was sitting and extending outward to his legs and arms. The giant loomed above him, its expressionless eyes intent on him.  
  
_...hold the mightiest weapon of all..._  
  
The sword flew out of the boy's hand and disappeared over the edge of the platform.  
  
_So don't forget..._  
  
The pool of darkness engulfed him under the gaze of the giant. He scrambled, hoping to find some sort of escape, but the viscous liquid held him effectively captive. The boy sank into it, growing more helpless. He fought to keep his head above the surface, but eventually that too became surrounded by the liquid shadow. As the last of him, his right hand, disappeared underneath the surface, the darkness stopped being liquid and became an empty void that the boy could just fall through forever.  
  
_...the one who will open the door._  
  
Falling...  
Falling...  
  
Falling where?  
Into darkness?  
  
***  
  
Nee, this is the author speaking and giving a few shoutouts.  
  
This is 'On a Starless Night,' and it appears to be a Kingdom Hearts fanfiction. In fact, it is a Kingdom Hearts fanfiction, although it takes place on an alternate timeline and certain things have changed. Hence why some of the script does not follow the game exactly. For reference I'm using the script prepared by Oliver Kong and posted on Game FAQ's. Really, don't sue. Original characters will appear where I deem them necessary, and I'm currently undecided on what pairings this story will involve or even if there will be pairings (I'm torn between Sora/Kairi or Riku/Kairi).  
  
Thanks to my gracious editor Koorino Megumi for both editing and helping me with brainstorming and confidence issues.  
Also, thanks to Iris Omega for helping me with a few of the lines that didn't appear in the script I have.  
  
And remember, I am merely an attention seeking author. Reviews are welcome and cause for me to rent out a piece of my soul to you. ^_^  
  



	2. A Time Before Destiny

Part Two: A Time Before Destiny  
  
This particular day on Destiny Islands was like every other day on Destiny Islands. The sea shone the same beautiful aqua under the same fair sky. The breeze that blew teased the fronds of the palm trees warmly. And on the white sand beaches that stretched across the coast of this little island, a sixteen-year-old boy was being woken not so delicately from a nap.  
  
"Sora!" one of his friends called out as she shook him out of a troubled slumber. "Wake up, you lazy bum!" His eyelids fluttered a few times before opening completely to the face of one of his best friends, a girl his own age with dark auburn hair that reached down to her shoulders and a smile that never failed to warm Sora's heart.  
  
"Aww...Kairi, can't you let up on me just this once?" Sora moaned as he woke up and brushed the sand off his red shorts and combed his fingers through his spiky brown hair to shake out any sand in there.  
  
Kairi grinned and shook her head. "Nope! You're lucky that Riku and I didn't just take the boat back and leave you stranded here. He wanted to, you know."  
  
Sora turned around to find his other best friend, a brawny, silver-haired boy he had known since childhood, looking at him with a with pity in his eyes. "Sheesh, I knew there was something wrong with you, wanting to come back to this little island again. I thought you'd outgrown that," Riku said as he crossed his arms.  
  
"Hey! I'm not a kid! Not any more than you guys!" the brown-haired boy defended himself. He began walking down the beach toward the bridge to a smaller island.  
  
"So," Riku said after they had arrived on the tiny island and settled on the bent trunk of the paopu tree. "Why exactly did you drag us here?"  
  
Sora shrugged, wondering how much of the truth he should tell. "I just woke up this morning, and I wanted to come back here again. Hey!" he said as he noticed a couple of objects hidden between the tree trunk and the ground. Grasping at them, he discovered that they were two old wooden swords. "Do you remember these?" Sora grinned as he tossed one of them to Riku. In the corner of his eye, he caught Kairi sighing at them as she made her way off the island.  
  
"Sure do. I remember how you used to cry for mercy when we dueled." Following some unseen script, Riku hopped down from his perch on the paopu tree and readied himself for an impending duel.  
  
"Funny, I always thought it was the other way around," Sora said, circling his opponent. "You wanna find out?"  
  
Riku charged, lunging at Sora and managing to land a scratch on him. "Ha! You mean, should I teach you a lesson?"   
  
Sora said nothing as he counterattacked, just grunted as he hit Riku with a combination sequence: left, right, down in quick succession. Though his attack managed to knock Riku to the ground, Sora failed to move away in time to escape Riku's counterattack, a devastating kick that he performed as he picked himself back up, and for that Sora was rewarded with Riku's feet thudding into his stomach and knocking him back a few steps.  
  
Riku began circling again, waiting for Sora to regain his balance and shouting taunts at his friend. Sora took advantage of this opening and charged towards Riku. Zealously, he swung his wooden weapon and caught Riku just beneath the eye, hard, and completely by accident.  
  
The cool, questioning glint in Riku's eyes told Sora that he noticed the use of a less than fair move, but other than that, the older boy seemed to ignore any pain. Instead, he used the proximity to Sora to grab the younger boy by the waist and throw him to the ground. Sora's back and head hit the packed sand hard enough to make a spiky, soft crater, and Sora wondered if he lost consciousness for a few seconds. The wooden blade of Riku's sword pressed against Sora's jugular. Sora winced, an acknowledgment of his defeat, and an outstretched hand replaced the wooden sword in Sora's line of sight. Gratefully, he accepted the hand and pulled himself to his feet. A smirk of Riku's flashed in Sora's direction, and Sora understood that everything was well between them and said so with a grin that Kairi always said brightened any room that it was flashed in.  
  
However, judging from the blue glare directed toward them from the bridge, Kairi still had a few issues to sort out with them. She crossed the tropical battlefield, blatantly ignoring the fact that both Sora and Riku were armed while she carried no weapon.  
  
"What do you guys think you're doing? You could have gotten yourselves hurt."  
  
"Come on, Kairi, it's just fun and games. I'm sure Sora didn't mean to hit me in the face. He's too clumsy for that." Riku gestured over at Sora, who, while looking down at his gangly arms and legs, blushed.  
  
"Yeah!" Sora retorted, "And I'm sure that Riku didn't trip me on purpose."  
  
"Trip?" Riku raised a silver eyebrow. "That was a tackle. I could show you what the difference is."  
  
With a nervous laugh and a single hand behind his head, Sora began to protest before Kairi stepped in. "There's no need for that. Besides, there are better ways for you guys to compete than just beating each other with sharp sticks." Breaking into a sudden smile, she took each of the boy's hands and led them across the bridge and through the little shack that graced the edge of the beach near the sparkling waterfall.  
  
As they exited through the lower door of the shack, Kairi dropped their hands and moved to one side. "I'll race you!"  
  
"What?" Riku said, wiping sweat from his brow. "You have to be kidding!"   
  
Sora had to agree as the air around him was so thick with humidity that he wondered if water would condense on his jacket, but he wouldn't dare say anything to Kairi, not when she seemed so eager to see them race.  
  
Resigned, Sora glanced at Riku. "The usual?" he asked as Kairi led them across the beach and through the shack at the far end. Passing through the dark, bare structure, they emerged into the cove, an extension of the beach where a bunch of parents long ago had built a place for the children to play. Both the bridge that stretched over a narrow inlet and the watch tower that stood guarding the island were rickety now, but the perceived danger added to the appeal. Even a few years ago, it had drawn the adventurous boys, but now the true shabbiness of the structure was only too apparent.  
  
"It seems that way. I suppose we should keep the stakes the same: a paopu fruit with Kairi." Riku shrugged.  
  
The brunette girl shook her head and laughed a little as Sora began to sputter. A paopu? With Kairi? He wondered for a second if she had ever seen that picture they had drawn of each other after he had added the extra detail. Hopefully not. How embarrassing, to have to own up to the huge crush he used to have on her when they had only been fourteen.  
  
An elbow to the ribs woke him up from his distraction. "Hey, Sora, the real world's calling," Riku called. Sora shook his head to clear it of these thoughts and focus on the race ahead of him. After losing in that duel, he would prove that he was superior to his more dexterous friend in something. They lined up against an invisible line, and Riku got into the ready position. Following his lead, Sora did the same.  
  
Kairi raised her hand and then lowered it as if she had cut an invisible rope and released the boys. Riku took off at a running start, dashing across the bridge without a care that it could collapse at any moment. Sora lagged behind, navigating the bridge and leaping across the most unstable parts. As he usually did, Riku took the long way around, sliding down the rope on the watch tower, while Sora jumped directly from the bank and waded across the shallowest part of the ocean. Running up the ramp and making jumps from one treetop to another, he tagged the tree just seconds before Riku did. Before he remembered that he had to make it back to Kairi, he gloated for a second. He then jumped off the highest platform and landed solidly, if not gracefully, on his feet.  
  
Sora took off running, retracing his earlier path and as he crossed the bridge the last time, he glanced back to see Riku barely behind him and yet too late to catch up to him. Sora pumped his fist in victory, thrilled to know that he was still faster than Riku.   
  
Riku glowered at him. "It was just a joke about the paopu fruit. No reason to take it seriously."  
  
Sora frowned. "It wasn't about the paopu!" It wasn't, he told himself, it really wasn't. He just wanted to prove to himself and his friends that he could still compete with Riku.  
  
With a casual toss of his head and a roll of his aqua eyes, Riku dismissed that last statement. "Uh-huh, sure. I bet you still believe in that old legend. You know, all that binding through eternity garbage."  
  
"I don't!" Sora protested. He didn't. Sure he had listened to Selphie, the hyper girl with the jump rope who used to play on the island, whenever she had rambled on about the paopu fruit, and one day after hearing the legend again, he had even drawn himself sharing one of the star-shaped fruits with Kairi, but he had never really believed. It was just a fruit, and the only reason that the adults refused to ever eat it was because it was poisonous. It had nothing to do with eternity. Nothing at all.  
  
"Sora?" Kairi leaned in and peered into his face, "Are you okay? You're kinda spacing out on us."  
  
"Uhh... huh?" Sora asked, eloquent as usual. "I'm not spacing out!" Kairi stepped back, and looked at Sora inquiringly with her hand on her hips. As usual, Riku just flashed a smirk. Both seemed to be less than convinced. "I'm not!" He protested, "I'm just remembering."  
  
Somehow, the friends found themselves wandering back to the beach as the red sun dipped below the horizon and the sky took on a vivid crimson tint. Just as Sora remembered doing so often when they were younger, they rested on the little island where Sora and Riku had dueled earlier.  
  
Kairi perched herself on the bent-over trunk of the paopu tree that graced the edge of the island. Sora rested next to her, closer to the base, while Riku leaned against the trunk where it was high enough to support his back. In silence, they watched the sun set before Kairi cleared her throat and asked the question that had been haunting them since they had arrived. "Do you guys still, you know, think about that day?"  
  
That day, that day. Kairi didn't have to say anything more; Sora knew the exact day she was talking about, and from the frown on Riku's face, he guessed that his best friend did too.  
  
"We built the raft..." Kairi continued before she trailed off.  
  
They had built a raft -- the idealistic, curious children they had been even two years ago. Sora remembered eagerly perusing the island, searching each nook for pieces of old logs and weathered cloths and used clothesline. They had slapped together the best raft they could, and even the adults had admitted that it looked pretty impressive. They would have sailed off to another world on it, maybe even found Kairi's real home with it.  
  
"Yeah..." Sora said, caught in the memories, "And we were going to sail away, and we were going to see your hometown."  
  
Even Riku lowered himself to reminiscing. "It wasn't that, but we were going to see what was out there. And now..." He shrugged. "And now I wonder if those other worlds even exist."  
  
Sora understood his friend. Two years ago, the possibilities of other worlds had seemed so fresh, so real. He had known they existed just because, to his expansive mind, they had simply had to, just as the sun had to rise and set. But now, as he looked out at the night that wrapped around the sky, he had never felt so unsure of anything before.  
  
"I know. What if the storm hadn't eaten up the raft? We could be on another world right now. We could have had the best time ever."  
  
Riku shook his head. "It wasn't just the raft." he said bitterly.  
  
No, it wasn't just the raft. The night of the storm, the three of them had rushed to their little island, but as soon as they had seen the wind-torn wreckage lying scattered on the beach, they had mourned but accepted the loss. But as they had walked back to the island, they had expected something to happen. They had watched the lightning play across the sky and ignored the rain that stung their faces for what seemed like hours, just waiting for something to happen. Admitting their defeat as the storm rolled away, they left the island in shambles and the three of them soaked and ragged.  
  
"I know. But that thing we felt that night. I think it's coming again!" Sora brightened. "I know it's coming again."  
  
Riku and Kairi stared at Sora, silent for several minutes. Then Kairi burst out into forced laughter. "You're silly, Sora. It's like you haven't changed a bit."  
  
Sora shook his head. "We've all changed too much. But I feel it this time, I really do!"  
  
"Ahh." Riku crossed his arms and gave Sora a penetrating gaze. "So that's why you dragged us here. I knew there was a reason." Despite the harsh words, he smiled too. "I feel it too. It'll be soon."  
  
A collective sigh filled the air, and Sora rested against the paopu tree as a comfortable silence settled among them. The stars twinkled above, and the sense of wonder he had felt those years ago came back as he watched the tiny lights play. One star burned brighter that the rest, the light wavering irregularly. He tracked the pattern of its flickering glow carefully. At least, he did until he felt Kairi's hand on top of his. Turning to her in surprise, he felt his cheeks heat up before he caught the look on her face. Her gaze was still fixed upwards, and the half moon illuminated a tear running down her cheek.  
  
When he took her hand, she squeezed it urgently, taking all the comfort from him that she could.  
  
"Kairi!" Riku called, and Sora realized that he had her other hand. The silver haired boy wrapped his arm around her and shook her gently.  
  
"I want..." she whimpered, "I want to go home."  
  
Sora helped Kairi to her feet. "Come on, we can go now, Kairi," he offered. "We don't have to stay on this island. "  
  
Kairi shook her head and smiled sadly. "That's not it. I want to go home. Back to my hometown."  
  
Apparently unfazed, Riku gave her a reassuring smile. "Soon Kairi, soon. You can be home again."  
  
Sora could just stare. Kairi? Going home? But why?  
  
***  
  
Author's notes: A little more alternate time line here than in the first chapter, nee? Hopefully, some of the deviations from the original game are becoming more obvious as the story continues. Trust me, it's going to get much further out there before it all ends. Heh heh.... This is THE unholy conglomeration of KH, Another Side, Another Story, Final Mix, Deep Dive, and a few strange things from my strange little headland.  
  
Now, for the pieces of soul to hand out.  
  
Koorino Megumi: You'd better be reading it. ^_~ I expect no less from my editor. Remember, folks: if anything in my story makes any sense, it's because of this wonderful person right here. A big thank you to her.  
  
Naela: The apocalypse? Really? I just thought that the dead had risen. M'dear, they're saving up the apocalypse for the day that you update Behind the Darkness. And the title isn't anything cool, it just fit. But thanks.  
  
Ginger Ninja: Thanks. ^_^ Hope you get a kick out of the later parts as well.  
  
None of your Business: Anything is possible, even a good novelization of Kingdom Hearts, which sadly this is not. But I'm glad that you're liking it. 


	3. Three Boats Come In

Part Three: Three Boats Come In.  
  
With due deliberation, Kairi tied the knot that leashed her boat to the wooden dock on the near end of the beach to make sure that her vessel wouldn't escape and, she barely admitted to herself, to stall for time. Sora and Riku were right -- something that they had been waiting for was finally going to happen tonight, and even now the orange sun began its descent. But was she ready?  
  
Of course she was, she answered herself as she jumped onto the dock and made her way to the secret place hidden at the root of the oldest tree on the island. Watching that star flicker and go out before her eyes last night had convinced her that she had to be ready. Of course Sora and Riku hadn't noticed it happen, and as they were rowing back to their home island, Riku had wondered out loud if it had only been a trick of the light that had caused the star to just disappear. Sora had said nothing, but from the way that he had averted his eyes and managed to look apologetic when Kairi had looked his way, she could tell that he too didn't believe her.   
  
The white sand path that Kairi was following finally reached her destination -- the entrance to the natural passageway that led to the secret place. Her fingers ran over the stone walls as she walked. Those rocks offered her reassurance of something solid -- something Kairi needed on this particular night. The walls remained unsullied at first, but as she ventured deeper and the passage widened slightly, chalk scribbles started to peek at her from little out-of-the-way places. A few of these she had done herself, although most of these had been drawn by other children who had explored the secret place after she had stopped coming to the island regularly.  
  
Just as the passageway started feeling claustrophobic, it widened into the small cavern that the superstitious children called the secret place. Unlike the passage, where only a few drawings graced the walls, there were almost no blank spaces on the cave walls on which to start a new picture, except near the wooden door. For years, that door had confounded everyone who entered the cave. No knob, no handle, no way to open the door that anyone could see.  
  
Distracting herself from thoughts of the door, Kairi looked at the artwork, most of which she remembered either drawing herself or watching someone else draw. Sora and Riku had drawn the monster on the big boulder when they were looking for something to fight against as children, and she and Sora had drawn the portraits of each other in a special niche. It was this picture that she knelt down to examine more carefully.  
  
The same faces smiled at each other -- Sora's clumsy interpretation of her face and her neater representation of his. But an arm stretched from Sora to Kairi offering a star-shaped fruit – A paopu. Silly Sora, he must have added it back when he still had the biggest crush on her. Despite the momentary awkwardness it made her feel, she still smiled at the memories of the sweetness that the picture offered.  
  
"This world has been connected." A voice, a low, ominous bass, interrupted her bout of nostalgia. Startled to hear someone other than Sora or Riku, Kairi turned from the picture on the wall and searched for the source of the voice. She hadn't heard anyone approach her.  
  
"Who are you?" she asked, not caring that her voice betrayed most of the unease she felt. "What are you talking about?"  
  
"Tied to the darkness...soon to be completely eclipsed."  
  
Venturing to the center of the cave, Kairi saw a shadowed figure wrapped in a brown, hooded cloak. Kairi could make out neither eyes nor features, although he must have had something of a body, considering the way that the garment seemed to be filled out in the right places.  
  
"You're really freaking me out," Kairi said as she tried to make sense of his words and the heavy sense of truth that they carried.  
  
"You do not yet know what lies beyond the door," the hooded figured continued as if he were not speaking to Kairi in particular, but to any person who was around to listen and Kairi just happened to be the person there. Prompted by his words, Kairi looked again at the unassuming wooden door, plain except for a painted decoration of gold around the edges.  
  
"So, what lies beyond the door?" she asked the figure.  
  
"There is so very much to learn. You understand so little."  
  
"What don't I understand?"  
  
Instead of answering, the hooded figure merely regarded Kairi with a disdainful: "One who knows nothing can understand nothing."  
  
"You know that's really rude-" Kairi started to chide before she realized that the figure had vanished just as suddenly as he had come. Where could he have gone? She took one sidelong glance at the door and then another as she noticed wisps of a dark fog seeping through the edges. From beneath the ground, tiny puddles of shadow formed, surrounding Kairi.  
  
Sensing danger approaching, she backed away slowly from the door. Two thin columns of solid darkness rose from each of the puddles followed by a rounded shape that Kairi figured was a head as soon as she saw the hollow yellow eyes staring at her. Creatures rose all around her, comical in appearance if not for the fact that they simply did not belong in the secret place. The creatures stood only about three feet tall and appeared to have no muscle, even to the point of bearing a pot belly. Their limbs were far too short for the creatures to be humanoid, and their legs bent out at odd angles so that they didn't walk as much as they shuffled. Outside of the glowing yellow eyes, which were the only part of the creatures that were not black, their faces had no features. The antennae on their heads twitched in all directions as they homed in on Kairi.  
  
While the others melted into the ground and spread out to the island beyond the cave, one in particular seemed to have its eye on Kairi. This shadow creature slithered towards her, and she started to run, stopping short as she saw a wall of the creatures between her and the safe exit. Halting on her heels, she turned to the lone shadow in front of her, and her eyes caught on the door behind it. While she calculated the chance of her escaping from the shadows and the chance that what lay beyond the door was worse than what awaited her in this cavern, uncertain of which direction she should flee.  
  
Her hesitation proved unfortunate as the shadow creature targeting her thrust its comical clawed hand at her and sent a blast of air. The hand never touched her, but the air that it sent hit her directly, rippling through her tank top and burying itself deep into her chest. Her breath seemed to catch, and she could neither inhale nor exhale while it remained. Just as she thought she would suffocate, the feeling of a line tugging from the outside took over, pulling not only the feeling of suffocation out, but something else, something important.  
  
She clasped her chest and fell to her knees, trying to keep the important thing inside her. A coolness spread within her, unpleasant even in the humid air. Was this the big important thing that was supposed to happen? No, it couldn't be! She pulled back on the line, demanding that the important thing stay with her. The force tugging at her fought viciously, attempting to rip the treasure out of her body. Something started to emerge, and Kairi knew that it was a losing battle that she was fighting. The precious thing inside her was escaping and with it her strength of will to fight.  
  
No, she thought, it can't be. Sora! Riku! Help me! The memories of her best friends surfaced in her mind. They were going on their adventure, and she was going with them. She couldn't let them down. Guys! The force pulling against her wavered, weakening a bit, and Kairi took the opportunity to grab at the treasure and pull it back into her until she found it slipping out of her grasp.  
  
A flash of light just in front of Kairi distracted her from her goal as she was blinded. The light faded quickly, and all traces of her precious thing vanished along with her vision. She could tell that it was dark, pitch black even, but even though she could hear the scratching of the creatures' feet as they slithered away from the secret place and started infesting the outside world, she could not pinpoint exactly where they were. The suffocating feeling gone, Kairi picked herself up from the ground and tried to run and perhaps warn... she couldn't remember... someone...some important people. Why couldn't she remember who they were?  
  
Maybe she should just wait for the answers to come to her. Nothing else seemed worth the effort of moving.  
  
***  
  
In quick, sloppy loops, Riku secured his boat to the dock, next to Kairi's. When the night fell, they would finally leave this island permanently, Kairi, Sora and him, and already the last touches of the sun descended below the horizon, turning the sky into a dark rainbow. In the growing darkness, the beach looked ominous, promising real adventures, not the children's games he and Sora had always played before.  
  
Riku scanned the beach for Kairi and, not finding her on the main beach, began combing the island for her. She never ventured on the wooden paths above the island, at least not without a companion. Heights had bothered her ever since he and Sora had met her years ago. The little shack near the bridge nobody ventured into unless they were trying to cross to the island, so he watched for a few moments -- the time it would take for someone to go in the shack, walk up the winding stairs and emerge on the upper level ready to cross the bridge. He waited for a few extra minutes, just in case Kairi was being slow, and then turned his attention to the other places where she might be.  
  
Of course! The secret place. She and Sora had been obsessed with that cavern, drawing pictures on the wall and dragging Riku along to join in their games. They had all agreed to meet that night on the little island with the paopu tree, but if Kairi had arrived early, she would have gone to the secret place first. Acting on his instincts, he rushed towards the secret place, planning to find Kairi there and bring her outside so they could wait for Sora and the grand journey that this night would bring the three of them.  
  
He ran through the winding tunnel, taking passing notice of but otherwise ignoring the dark tendrils of fog that wafted past him. Kairi waited at the other end, as he had expected her to. She stood still, her back turned to Riku, and facing the door on the far side of the cave.  
  
"Kairi," he called as he approached her. She turned to him, revealing blank, sleepy eyes. He ran to her, grabbing her shoulders and shaking her furiously. "Kairi! Are you okay? Kairi! Wake up!"   
  
Kairi was unresponsive, staring at Riku with hollow blue eyes. "Riku..." she breathed in a voice as expressionless as the rest of her before she turned away from Riku and faced the door again. Hands still lingering on her shoulders, Riku focused on the door for the first time. Curls of black smoke leaked through the edges of the door, which trembled as if massive pressure were building up behind it.  
  
"Kairi!" Riku said, pointing at the door. "Kairi! Wake up. The door is opening. We have to go now. We need to meet Sora." At her lack of response, Riku attempted to pick her up and bring her back to the island only to find that she remained fixed to the ground, regardless of the effort he put into lifting her. "You wanted to go home." He gritted his teeth. "This is your chance."  
  
Still nothing. It occurred to him that this complete unresponsiveness of Kairi's, her fixation on the door and particularly the dead look in her eyes signaled that something was wrong. Perhaps he should get Sora first and come back here. Together, perhaps they could do something.  
  
Riku ran from the secret place and out towards the dock where Sora would tie his boat. He had made it just outside the entrance to the secret place when a curious black creature blocked his path. It looked wimpy. Short, chubby, and deformed, nothing indicated that it posed any danger except for the fact that it did not belong on the island. He arrogantly tried to walk past this oddity until it leapt at him and attempted to tear into him.  
  
Those tiny claws on the ends of those comical arms were sharp, and Riku winced as he felt them dig into his skin. He used his superior strength to shake off the creature, but five more replaced it as Riku tried to start forward once again. Unarmed, he had no chance against them, especially as he saw more of them rising from the ground in the distance.  
  
The little island! He and Sora had just dueled against each other the day before. The wooden sword might not be the best of weapons, but any advantage that he could grab would be a blessing when fighting an unknown opponent. He fled towards his island, just to get his weapon, he assured himself as he raced through the shack and crossed the bridge to the smaller island. The creatures followed him for a bit but seemed to lose interest soon after. They scattered, probably content to have caused some panic and to leave Riku unharmed. Still, better to be prepared. He found his old wooden sword, hoping that it could fend off the funny creatures if they decided to attack him again.  
  
Where was Sora? Riku asked himself as he noticed the sky darkening with storm clouds. Sora might be an inferior fighter compared to Riku, but he wasn't wimpy enough to let something as insignificant as a rough sea get in the way of the start of an adventure. The sea was still unusually calm, as if it were waiting until the worst possible moment to unleash a nasty surprise on the island. The wind that seemed to whip so harshly only affected the island, it seemed. Experimentally, Riku walked over to the edge of his little island and stuck his arm out over the sea. Nothing. Complete calm.  
  
He craned his head back and saw the probable source of the strange gale. A purple storm, contained in a neat sphere, roiled overhead. The lightning, the source of the eerie color, occasionally extended beyond the confines of the storm but never actually struck. Directly beneath the storm, a void opened, sending up a smoky curl of darkness. This was it, he realized as a shiver, born from excitement rather than the strong wind, passed through him.  
  
This was what fate felt like.  
  
***  
  
At the late hour that Sora arrived on Destiny Islands, he didn't bother to tie his boat. From the main island, the one where he, Riku, and Kairi lived, the storm over Destiny Islands had seemed wicked, and once his mother discovered he wouldn't be coming to dinner that night, she would probably send out the local fishermen in search of him and his friends. His mother was over-protective that way. As it was, he was late enough. The three of them had agreed to meet just at sunset, and already night had fallen over the island, made darker by the thick clouds that shrouded the moon and stars that usually illuminated the night sky.  
  
So, he hopped out of his little rowboat and onto the dock without bothering to secure it. Normally a foolish action, Sora no longer cared. Something told him that he no longer needed that old boat to go on his adventures. Unlike his younger days, he would no longer need to lurk in the secret place, listening to the waterfalls echoing through the stones and pretending that it was the churning of some monster hidden within the rocks.  
  
From Riku's and Kairi's boats floating on the still waters, he assumed that both of them had arrived before he did, although he could see neither of them. Squinting, he could see a lone figure standing on the little island where he and Riku had dueled. Best to head over there, where he could find at least one of his friends.  
  
With his mind made, he leaped onto the dock and headed toward the island. Or he would have if he had not been tackled then. His assailant attacked from behind, ripping black claws into his jacket and soon after into his back. The pain he felt was familiar, although he couldn't place where he would have known it from. That is until he shook his attacker into the water and noticed who, or perhaps more accurately, what surrounded him.   
  
Those creatures from his dream -- he remembered them vividly. The way they moved, the way they attacked, their glowing yellow eyes were all imprinted on his mind, and his assailant and thousands of its copies dredged up reminders of his dream. They were replicas of his nightmare creatures, the little ones at least.  
  
He couldn't fight them, not without a sword, an actual sword. Not some wooden toy he could pick up on the island. Would Riku know that? And Kairi? She couldn't fight them anyway, would she know to stay away from them?  
  
His nightmares surrounded him, and he fled to the little island where one of his friends, he couldn't tell who from this distance, waited. He paused for breath only when he reached the shack, which the shadows did not enter for some unknown reason, although he heard them clawing at the door. He raced up the stairs and burst out of the upper level of the seaside shack.  
  
He noticed the wind first. The beach, the sea, -- everywhere else but the little island stood in complete calm, accentuating the contrast between the violent storm and the eerie deadness of surrounding it. The wind lashed at him as he attempted to cross the bridge.  
  
"Riku!" Sora called as he finally made it across the bridge and confirmed that Riku was indeed standing there alone, opening himself up to the storm. "Where's Kairi? Isn't she supposed to be with you?"  
  
In the strange light, Riku's eyes seemed to glow as he lowered his head and looked at Sora. "The door has opened, Sora! Don't you get it? Now we can go to the outside world!"  
  
Truly confused, Sora looked into his friend's manic aqua eyes. "What are you talking about? We gotta find Kairi!"  
  
Was it just Sora's imagination, or did Riku seem to return to reality for a single moment? "Kairi... Kairi's coming with us! Once we step through, we might not be able to come back. We may never see our parents again. There's no turning back. But this may be our only chance. We can't let fear stop us! I'm not afraid of the darkness!" Riku said the last part in the same tone of voice he used when he challenged Sora to a duel.  
  
"Riku!" Sora called out to his friend, who now stepped into the shadowy void that had lingered directly beneath the storm. The smoky curls of darkness rose, swirling around Riku in the wind. Through the whirlwind, Riku reached his hand out to Sora, a gesture reminiscent of helping Sora up after the older boy knocked him down. This...this was his friend, Sora realized. This was his friend who was going crazy, being swallowed by the blackness.  
  
"Riku!" he repeated, stretching out his hand but missing Riku's elusive grasp.   
  
Lucidity returned to Riku's eyes for just a second, and while excitement lay there, fear was buried deep inside. His lips began to form the beginnings of words that Sora couldn't make out.  
  
"What is it?"  
  
Riku started to repeat what he had said, but the void opened then, sending forth a solid layer of darkness and obscuring Sora's view of his friend. Sora himself was pushed back by the sudden gust of wind. He regained his balance and waited for the dark smoke to clear only to find that Riku, along with the void, had disappeared. All around him, the creatures from his nightmare danced their shuffling dance, ready to pounce on him. He needed something, something he could fight with.  
  
A flash of light, lasting a fraction of a second, caught his eye and drew his attention away from the creatures. A heaviness materialized in his right hand, and looking down, he realized that a sword accompanied the heavy feeling. Its weight, its length, the little detailing he could see in the darkness reminded him of the sword in his dream. Was it coming true?  
  
_It will do...for now._  
  
The voice? That was the voice he had heard in his dream, but that wasn't important. What was important was that he could fight these creatures now and find Kairi. The shadows attacked him then, and Sora reciprocated, nodding with a grim satisfaction as his blade caught one of them in the stomach. The skin against his blade was more resilient than it had been in his dream, but straining himself, Sora discovered that he could tear through the shadow and send it to its death.  
  
With effort, he could hold his own long enough to defend himself, he thought as he tore into another of the creatures. But he couldn't keep up a never-ending battle. Something had to give.  
  
He should go home. The sea was still calm, there was still time to make it back, and he needed to get away from the creatures. He passed back over the bridge, his hair and clothes settling down as the wind died away. Exiting the shack and crossing the beach, a realization came over him. What if he didn't want to go home? He, Riku, and Kairi had been waiting for the opportunity to get off the island for at least two years, longer even. Who said he had to go home? He just needed to get away from the shadows. His gaze was drawn to the opening to the secret place, looking completely different than it had before. Instead of just a crevice between a tree and a rock, a shining white door marked its entrance.  
  
The door would be there. Would Kairi be as well? Fixing the entrance in his mind, Sora fought his way through the dark creatures, ignoring the gouges they so easily inflicted on him. His progress remained slow for all that he was exerting himself. The closer he got to the door, the thicker the hordes became until all he could do to make progress was slash at the group directly in front of him and plow through them. Crude but effective, the strategy was pain-intensive as he was not guarding himself from the shadows at his back or sides. These creatures took advantage of his weakness and attacked with fervor. The remains of his jacket were little more than rags, and his shirt was not in the best of conditions either. The burning in his shoulders and back warned of numerous deep scratches. He needed to escape them, now.  
  
Sora had never considered himself one to run from battles. As a kid, he had actively sought out challenges from the other children on the island, and he and Riku had originally become friends out of a sense of rivalry, as they were the best at swordplay. Years of climbing and fighting had left him accustomed to running around with bruises and scrapes. That was play, though. This was serious, and if he had the time and if there weren't so many creatures, he could fight them off. But he hadn't the time, and they were a legion.  
  
Sora could run away. No one would blame him, not with the situation as it was. The door was so close, just on the other side of the springs from him. He focused in that direction, fixing the location of the door in his memory. Holding a deep breath in his lungs and closing his eyes to block out the image of the gauntlet he would pass through, he started to run.  
  
From all directions the creatures assailed him, and all he could do was speed up. The less tenacious shook off easily as Sora moved faster toward the door, while the most persistent of them melted off only as he reached the door. Did they fear it? he wondered as he opened his eyes and noticed the shadows that crowded the beaches of Destiny Islands kept their distance from the door. White and ornate, it matched the one in his dreams perfectly, except that this one shone a little as Sora looked at it.  
  
Knowing the door was his only way out, Sora opened it, relieved to discover the same winding tunnel lay beyond it. The nightmare creatures didn't follow him, and he slowed down to take a breath and drink one of the potions he had brought for this journey. Sora rested the sword on the ground as he gulped down the bottle of glowing green liquid. Almost immediately, the searing pain in his back and shoulders died down until it was just a dull throb, annoying, but not at all debilitating.  
  
He did not stop for long, a sense of urgency compelling him to retrieve his sword and tugging him through the dark passageway and into the cave. A familiar figure stood inside, facing the door in the back and unmoving except for a dark wind pushing at her hair and clothing.  
  
"Kairi!" Sora reached out to her, happy to have found her and yet afraid that something had happened.  
  
The girl turned, and her blue eyes looked different than they usually did. The gleam that lay within them was dormant, and they betrayed no emotion whatsoever. "Sora," Kairi called sleepily. Her hand twitched as if she were trying to lift it or move it somehow. Was she reaching out to him?  
  
Sora stumbled, reaching out to her and tripping over some invisible stone or root on the way. Whatever he had tripped over, he missed her hand. Behind her, the door trembled, sending a low rumble through the ground reminiscent of thunder. The blackness that leaked through the door stopped for a second, stilling the air in the chamber long enough for Sora to notice. The door flung open again, sending a strong gale through the secret place. The boy planted his feet firmly into the packed dirt ground and shielded himself with crossed arms in front of his face.   
  
Kairi did no such thing, and the wind pushed her back as easily as it would have a piece of cloth, sending her through Sora. Despite himself, he dropped his guard, looking at the empty spot where his friend used to be. The wind took advantage of this opportunity, blowing Sora out of the secret place. He would have enjoyed the sensation of flying as the wind carried him into the air, except for one thing: the direction it was carrying him in.  
  
He was going into the eye of the storm itself.   
  
***  
  
Author's Notes: Before I get to the ritual handing out of soul, I have a few announcements. First, the next update will probably be delayed due to the fact that both my editor and I are of the mysterious breed of humans called college students, and next week happens to be finals... joy ^^;;. Add that to the fact that I'm too cheap to buy gifts for all my friends and so are force to write or draw something for Christmas, and my Starless time is shot. So, just to keep everyone aware, no updates until Christmas pro'lly. Second, due to the fact that I had to cram way too much into this chapter, the next one will seem quite bare. Please bear with me. Third, and most importantly, if you were on Fanfiction.net on December 7th, check your computer for viruses. Supposedly during the hardware upgrade, a hacker was able to get in and send a virus.  
  
And remember, only one of you is actually close enough to kill me for this ending ... I hope ^_^;;. So I ask you, don't kill me.  
  
Now, for the bits of the soul to pass out:  
  
Koorino Megumi: As always, thank you for your beta-reading, editing, and general wonderfulness as I write this story. And you deserve every drop of praise that I can offer you. I'm glad that you actually like reading it.  
  
Ginger Ninja: Thanks. I'm glad that I managed to achieve that sad mood. Again, glad you liked it.  
  
None of your Business: I've decided to be lazy and let any pairings that arise come up and develop on their own. It's much easier, and I don't have to make a commitment until something major happens.  
  
RainWarriorPrincess: Wow!! Thanks. Those are some major compliments, especially because I'm new at the really descriptive stuff.  
  
Catty Engles: I never thought about that before, but it's such a nifty idea. Watch out, it might appear in a future chapter, with credit of course. ^_^  
  
Until next time. ^^ 


	4. To a New Path

Part Four: To a New Path  
  
The purple lightning brimmed along the outer edges of the spherical storm like a curtain, and as Sora passed through it, his body felt a momentary jolt of electricity that set his already spiky hair on end. Once inside, the wind died down and roughly deposited Sora on the soft, sandy ground below. The pieces of the battered watch tower emerging from the ground betrayed that the solid ground was part of the cove that had found its way inside the storm.  
  
Sora almost bothered wondering what a piece of his island was doing suspended in midair and in the middle of a storm, no less, but the being rising from the edge of the storm distracted all of this attention. The shadow creatures, the door, and the sword had all appeared from his dream, exactly as he had imagined them; why should the monster be any different?  
  
Its head, the most human-like part of the monster, rose above the horizon first. Though the head was still made completely of shadow, it retained a sort of human shape, even having the outline of long, shaggy hair. As more of the monster emerged, it became less human, from the heart-shaped hole in its chest to the small legs with nothing more than wisps for feet. Its yellow eyes glared down at Sora as he pulled its arm back.  
  
Sensing a fight on the way, Sora reached for his sword, which luckily had landed only a few feet away from where he had fallen. Retrieving it, he picked himself up from the ground just as the monster buried its fist in the sand. The shock rolled through the land, throwing Sora off balance off-balance for a few seconds before he regained his footing.  
  
No problem, he told himself, assessing his enemy. These were just the same moves as in his dream; the way the darkness puddled around the beach testified to that. If he were right, shadows would soon emerge from the pool, and they did just that, distracting Sora temporarily from the monster looming above him.  
  
Unlike the hordes that had blocked him on the island, this group of shadows numbered only five, a manageable if difficult fight. He planted his feet in the pool of darkness and slashed at the little creatures as they moved closer to him. Their skin, a thick membrane, resisted his blade's attempts to slice through it. With effort, though, he forced the sword through one of the shadow creatures, shredding it into strips of darkness before it vanished.  
  
The next one guarded against his attacks, and a sharp clang where claws met blade and sending a spark against the air. Sora dipped down and swept his weapon upwards, catching the creature in its pot belly and slicing it up the middle. As he did this, another one came from behind, tackling Sora to the ground. He withdrew his sword wildly, almost striking himself with his blade while he tried to maintain his balance. Regaining it, he whipped himself around as he sought to detach the shadow clinging to his neck. He flung the shadow off, and it hit the sand, skidding a little before it halted at the edge of the storm. Slumped over, the creature seemed to be knocked out.  
  
Feeling the sharp, searing pain in his neck from where the shadow had clawed at him, Sora grimaced as he stared up into the dead eyes of his gigantic opponent. His grip on the hilt of his sword tightened until he could feel his knuckles turn white with a new determination. He would defeat his nightmare.  
  
He recalled his dream, particularly the part where he had fought the monster, quickly scanning his actions for what had been most effective. The little creatures were of little consequence if he remembered correctly. More would spawn from the dark puddle, and by the time he killed one batch, the next one would take its place. The key was to defeat the monster, only, in his dream, he hadn't really defeated it. Or had he? That battle seemed like such a blur in his mind.  
  
A blackish glow distracted Sora from his thoughts just in time for him to notice a large ball of energy flying towards his face, although not soon enough to actually dodge the energy. A wave of heaviness washed over him, sending him back a few feet and pressing down on him. He resisted the weight, bracing himself in the sand to keep himself standing.  
  
For a few seconds, Sora could almost feel his bones bending under the pressure before it relented and he could stand upright again. Even as he could feel his body shaking from that last attack, he charged towards the monster, looking to climb up the arm as he had in the dream and hit it on the head.  
  
In the dream, the giant's black skin had been dry --rough enough for Sora's shoes to hold onto as he negotiated his way up the arm. In reality, the skin was slick, denying Sora even that advantage. Sora edged his way up the arm, making excruciatingly slow progress as his shoes constantly threatened to lose their tenuous grip on the near frictionless surface he stood on.  
  
One, two strikes to the monster's head Sora managed to get in when he finally reached the shoulder before his balance completely dissolved and he fell back to the sand below. Quickly, he rolled over and recovered his footing and his sword, ready to face the monster, now kneeling back and gathering energy in the heart-shaped hole in its torso. Its hands, low to the ground and not spawning shadow creatures, were vulnerable, and as Sora shook off the shock of falling from its shoulders, he moved to take advantage of this, hacking relentlessly at the closer of the monster's wrists.   
  
The giant felt no pain, at least none that it would acknowledge or that Sora could observe, as it continued on with its attacks. Small spheres of static electricity hit him, his body sending up a little flare as each one found its mark. He gritted his teeth against the shocks of pain, focusing on attacking the monster and hopefully causing some damage.  
  
At last, with a perfect swoop of his sword, the monster's skin gave way, and the monster seemed to let out a single groan. Not that Sora actually heard anything, as the storm howling around them drowned out any noise. The dark cloud contracted around them then, sending a fierce wind into the calm eye of the storm. While the giant was large enough to remain unaffected by the sudden gale, Sora was easily caught in the great storm and lost his contact with the ground.  
  
The storm tossed him in circles. From his vantage point, the shrinking eye of the storm spun rapidly around Sora, who was not quite at the center. To stop the dizziness that welled up in his head and stomach, he closed his eyes and tried to shut out the sensation of motion. The wall of the storm engulfed him, and the strengthening wind battered his already aching body.   
  
Sora couldn't tell exactly when the world around him seemed to explode, just that the feeling of dizziness melted away only to be unmercifully replaced by a throbbing headache. The howling of the storm peaked for a brief second and then ceased, leaving Sora with nothing to hear but the ringing sensation in his own ears. His body stopped spinning in circles as it was hurled into a more powerful vortex. A light, brilliant enough for Sora to see from behind closed lids, flashed, and then there was darkness.  
  
***  
  
Sora woke up free from the pain that had plagued him before. For some reason he was walking when he opened his eyes, his feet staying true to the dirt path set before him. It was utterly silent and calm, the only sounds being Sora's footsteps as he continued to walk. The slight breeze seemed to emphasize the stillness rather than break it. Gaining control of his pace, Sora slowed in order to take in the scenery around him.  
  
It was night, perfect night, no moon in the sky and only a single star overhead. He stared up at the star and noticed its erratic flickering, just like the star they had watched the night before. He dropped his weapon and lay down on the grass at the side of the dirt path, in order to watch the star better .  
  
The star burst, sending drops of light raining through the distant sky. Sora almost screamed, feeling a shock and a sense of loss overwhelming him. That star was important. How else was he supposed to find his way down this path?  
  
_Get up. This is no place to rest._  
  
The voice from his dream tugged at Sora, and he resisted.  
  
_Where am I supposed to go?_  
  
Sora stayed stubbornly on the ground, keeping his gazed fixed on the points of falling light. He didn't want to move from this spot, and the more he stayed, the more he doubted that he could move.  
  
_It doesn't matter. You can't stay here._  
  
The usually calm voice from his dream took on an urgent note, stirring Sora from his inertia. Slowly, he rolled himself into a seated position, his body feeling heavier than he thought it should. He rose to his feet, picking up his sword in the process and smiling slightly as he felt it give him strength.  
  
_Good. Now start walking. You will awaken soon._  
  
One foot in front of the other, Sora started the arduous task of walking. He ignored the stillness, except when he wondered how he could break through it. The more he walked, the easier it became to move and the fainter the outside world seemed, as if it were fading into a pale dreamland.  
  
How had he fallen asleep so suddenly, he had just been walking just a few seconds ago? Wait... the voice had said something about him waking up soon. Did that mean he had been asleep the whole time? But it felt so real, and the way his life seemed to be turning these past few days, even if this were a dream, it could very well become real in the near future.  
  
A lingering ache tugged at him then, calling him somewhere. Sora regained consciousness as he fought against the pounding headache that seemed to have risen out of nowhere. He raised his hand to his head, willing for the pain to leave.  
  
"My head...."  
  
Sora opened his eyes slightly, as much as the throbbing in his head would let him. He couldn't see much of his surroundings, just some crates lined up against a low stone wall. It was enough, though, to tell him that he was no longer anywhere familiar.  
  
So, where was he?  
  
***   
  
Yay! Just in time for Christmas. Since I'm home for winter break this next month, my internet time is much more limited than at school. This is good and bad. More writing time, less distraction = good. Restricted editing and posting access = bad. Don't know what this is going to do to the posting schedule. But, most importantly,I have a PS2 in my place of residence and a copy of KH to obsess over.  
  
So now for the soul pieces:  
  
Koorino Megumi: Much thanks to you, my l33t-speaking, Sora-obsessing editor. Especially getting this done so quickly during the busy holiday season. I hope that you continue enjoying the story as much as your response to chapter 3 would imply.  
  
RainWarriorPrincess: Seriously, much thanks for giving me my recommended daily allowance for ego-boosting. ^_^ Glad to see that you like the descriptions. Hope that your computer didn't get infected.  
  
Ginger Ninja: Not much to say but a random 'hi' and a kind 'thank you for your patience'.   
  
Naela: Foul play certainly may be afoot. ^_^ Hope that this AU isn't getting too predictable. *perks up at the mention of BTD* Update! Update!  
  
Catty Engles: Hmm... trying to keep what I have to say somewhat relevant to the story... I might have heard that folktale before, but I didn't actually use it consciously. If it gets mentioned later *coughTraverseTowncough*, then it'll be because you brought it to my attention. Also, yes both my editor and I are in college (but only Freshies), and trust me, the four years between freshman year in high-school and freshman year in college do miracles for writing skills.  
  
Till next time! ^_~ 


	5. First Interlude: Search for a King

First Interlude: Search for a King  
  
Life at Disney Castle used to be enjoyable, fun even for the highest ranking individuals with the most strenuous responsibilities. Even the brooms, strangely animate for cleaning supplies, did their menial duties with a bounce in their step. Their king, though rodent-like in form, ruled with a fair and wise hand, genuinely keeping the best interests of the kingdom in mind as he made his decisions.  
  
Two years ago, with nary a note nor a goodbye to anyone, the king and his faithful dog had vanished, apparently starting some quest that no one else had needed to hear of. His queen had taken over the throne in her husband's absence, and while she too was a wise and fair ruler, her heart was too distraught over the disappearance of her husband to rule with the passion and vigor that the king had.  
  
Thinking of these recent events, the royal wizard, a short, white-feathered duck, waddled his way to the throne room, a slightly cross look on his face. Not her fault, he kept trying to reason unsuccessfully to himself. Everyone felt the king's absence these days, and the queen must have felt it hardest of all. But he and the knight captain had been the king's closest advisors and friends. They too were suffering under the loss of their king, and yet they managed to carry on in their daily duties.  
  
The duck shook those thoughts out of his head and raised a hand to smooth the scowl off his feathery brow. Whatever his feelings towards the situation might be, he had to keep at least an air of civility as he talked to the queen at their daily meetings.  
  
In front of the oversized door to the throne room, the duck gave the special knock --three taps to a particular beat– and waited for the smaller, functional door to open. He stepped in with a strained smile pasted across his bill.  
  
"Good morning your–" He stopped suddenly as he noticed the occupants of the throne room. The queen, of course, sat regally on the throne at the end of the red carpet. Her advisor, and the duck's sweetheart, stood at the queen's right side, while kneeling in front of the throne was the captain of the guard, a lanky dog-like person. All of these people were to be expected as they were the participants in the morning meetings. The fourth occupant though, sitting on the queen's left side, thin black tail thumping against the ground, with some sort of note in his mouth, set the duck into his stupor.  
  
"Donald," the queen said at last, breaking the duck out of his trance, "we've been waiting for you."  
  
"Pluto!" Donald shouted to the dog in shock, forgetting where he was. "Pluto, what are you doing here? Where's the-"  
  
"Donald," echoed the queen's advisor, "calm down for a second, okay? We'll find out what's going on."  
  
Under his white feathers, Donald could feel his cheeks turning red. "Yes, Daisy." He walked towards the throne and knelt down, taking his place next to the captain of the knights. He bowed his head in deference to the queen, although only a mere second passed before he raised one of his eyes to regard the dog and, more specifically, the note he held in his mouth.  
  
"Ahem." The queen cleared her throat. "Donald, step forward please."  
  
Hesitantly, Donald rose from his bowing position and stepped forward, one webbed foot in front of the other. "Yes, Queen Minnie."  
  
Queen Minnie gestured to the dog at her side. "Pluto has a note for you."  
  
Pluto stepped forward, nudging Donald's hand with his head for a little pat before giving the duck the letter. Donald took the note and saw that it indeed was emblazoned with the King's seal, a representation of a mouse's head. He slipped a finger under the seal, trying not to break the seal itself while opening the letter. Curious eyes watched him from all directions as he read the contents of the letter.  
  
_Donald,  
  
Sorry to rush off without sayin' goodbye or tellin' anyone, but there's been big trouble   
brewin'. Not sure why, but the stars have been blinkin' out, one by one. And that means disaster can't be far behind. I wish I didn't hafta leave you all but I've had to go check into it. There should be a "key"-the key to our survival. So I need you and Goofy to find it. Got it? We need that key or we're doomed! So go to Traverse Town and find Leon. He'll point you in the right direction.  
  
P.S.  
  
Would ya apologize to Minnie for me? Thanks, pal._  
  
He read through the letter at least three times before he folded it up and tucked it inside one of his jacket's pockets. He caught the other three peering at him curiously, their eyes silently asking him to summarize the letter's contents.   
  
"He-he said," Donald sputtered, trying to force out the words. "He said that he's sorry that he left us, but that something bad is just around the corner. He wants Goofy and I to go out and find a special key." He removed the letter from his pocket and offered it to the queen.  
  
The queen's gentle, mousy face grew solemn as she read the words her husband had printed on the page, her mouth silently saying each word as she read it. When she was done, she handed it to her advisor, who in turn handed it to Goofy, the captain of the knights, who merely looked confused until he must have reached the part about their assignment. His expression of puzzlement changed into one of fixed determination. Donald almost burst out in a fit of laughter at seeing that expression on Goofy's face. The look that the normally easygoing captain wore now seemed so out-of-place and comical that Donald almost forgot the seriousness of the mission.  
  
"You will help the king," the queen said, more as a request than an actual order.  
  
Donald nodded immediately, and after he had glared at Goofy, the captain hesitantly nodded as well. "Of course, your majesty," the duck answered for the both of them, "We'll find the king and this 'key.'"  
  
The queen bowed her head slightly in gratitude. "Thank you, both of you." With that, she waved her hand and dismissed the meeting for the day. Goofy ambled out of the stark throne room, probably to fit in one last doze in the garden before they started on their journey. Donald trailed behind him, purposefully dawdling until he glanced at Daisy and saw her shooing him off with a wave of a feathery hand and an urgent look. He quickened his pace a little, completely aware that Daisy and Minnie must have had something important to talk about. The red carpet leading out of the throne room, usually long, could be all too short sometimes, and the ladies, usually talkative, could remain all too silent. By the time he had reached the door leading from the throne room, not a word had been spoken, and he could stall no further.  
  
Once Donald had exited the throne room and closed the door behind him, he leaned against it, his ears on alert for any interesting information that might leak from the room. He could distinguish nothing from the muffled strains of conversation that managed to carry across the gigantic throne room. He let out a quack of frustration at his inability to eavesdrop. Immediately, the ladies' voices hushed, and Donald could only wonder what they were talking about.  
  
Daisy exited the throne room a few minutes later, a refined slowness disguising her waddle and a look of annoyance in her eyes as she regarded Donald.  
  
"Daisy..." Donald started, unsure whether he was about to give her an excuse or an apology, before she prevented him from continuing.  
  
"The queen and I have been talking. We think that after you and Goofy have left on your mission, we're going to... going to seal this world. Prevent anyone on the outside from coming in, and prevent anyone on the inside from going out."  
  
"What?!" Donald flared.  
  
"Could you and Goofy do one thing for us when you get to Traverse Town?" Daisy asked, gracefully ignoring the impending temper tantrum. Donald managed to relax somewhat and looked at her quizzically.  
  
"Your nephews, they run a shop there if I recall correctly. Could you bring them back here for us? The queen has already agreed to let them in for safe-keeping. But you and Goofy and him..." She pointed to a small green creature decked out in a top hat and a semi-formal suit that Donald had not noticed before, probably because he had been spending way too much time looking at Daisy.  
  
"Who is he?" Donald interrupted.  
  
Instead of letting Daisy answer, the green creature jumped up a couple of times and said with a flourish, "Cricket's the name. Jiminy Cricket at your service." The cricket bowed once and hopped over to the confused wizard. Seeing him up close, Donald realized that the cricket could probably fit in both his hands. "Daisy..." he started, glancing from the cricket to the other duck repeatedly.  
  
"The queen wants him to chronicle your travels and send back reports. You see, in order to protect this world... we're not going to be able to let you or Goofy back in until you either have the king or the key."  
  
For once, Donald did not let his infamous temper take control of him, not at that exact moment, anyway. He understood. The first concern of everyone, now that they knew that the worlds were in danger, was to keep their own safe. "I understand," he said, his eyes downcast. "We've got to protect the kingdom."  
  
Daisy reached out to touch his shoulder with a gentle hand. "Minnie and I, we appreciate what you and Goofy are doing. Come back safely, you hear? Both of you, the king, and the key."  
  
He was not tearing up. The wetness that was gathering in the corners of his eyes was just from the wind hitting them or something. Maybe they were just itchy and he needed to blink. That this was goodbye was only a coincidence.  
  
"Daisy, can you take care of the ..." Donald trailed off, knowing that she knew exactly what he was talking about.  
  
She nodded solemnly. "Of course. You be careful. Now you go and get ready. Good luck." Slowly, Daisy turned away, gliding down the elegant marble corridor and pausing occasionally as if viewing the gardens below.  
  
He paused as well, wondering if he should say goodbye to her or just let things stay as they were. Daisy herself gave no clues that he could figure out as she meandered down the hall for a few steps, looked out into the gardens for a few seconds, and meandered again, never looking back at him. Donald finally choked and quacked out a quick "Goodbye" before he ran off to retrieve Goofy from the garden and prepare for the long journey ahead.  
  
Just as Donald had suspected, Goofy had been sleeping in the garden, dozing peacefully with the last few minutes of free time they had before being shipped off to another world. After normal poking and prodding had failed to wake the knight commander, a taste of thunder had worked nicely, startling him into waking and giving Donald a well-needed release for his nervous tension.  
  
"Gawrsh Jiminy, your world disappeared too?" Goofy asked a few minutes afterwards as Donald, Goofy, and Jiminy started down the spiral stairs that led to the Gummiport.   
  
In the dim reddish light, Donald heard rather than saw Jiminy scramble between their feet as he answered. "It was terrible. We were scattered. And as far as I can see, I'm the only one who made it to this castle."  
  
Donald reflected on this and his earlier conversation with Daisy. He understood now, what her and the queen's concern had been. If worlds were getting destroyed, then the safety of the citizens had to be the first priority of everybody. "Goofy?"  
  
For a moment, the tall dog looked at Donald, confused, before his usually dopey eyes brightened with realization. "Oh, right... I gotcha. While we're in the other worlds, we can't let on where we're from. We've gotta protect the world border."  
  
Would he never learn English? "Order!" Donald corrected vehemently. Around the queen and Daisy, he might have to control his temper, but at least around Goofy, he was free to let go of his frustration.  
  
"Right," Goofy said, undisturbed by Donald's temper, "World order."  
  
It was going to be a long journey, Donald mused as they reached the bottom of the stairs and proceeded down the hallway leading to the Gummiport. They all lapsed into an uncomfortable silence, preoccupied with their own concerns, or in Goofy's case, a lack of concerns.  
  
"So, uh," Goofy said as they approached the automatic door at the end of the hallway, "I guess we'll need new duds when we get there." He motioned to his and Donald's gear, official-looking and functional enough for their duties at the palace, but not practical for journeying and a rather obvious sign as to their origins. It was a good idea, and so Donald did what he usually did on those rare occasions when Goofy had a good idea: he filed it away for later use and otherwise ignored it.  
  
They reached the door leading to the Gummiport, and it opened automatically, revealing a tangled system of cogs and pumps and conveyor belts that managed somehow to work as a coherent whole to provide the interworld transportation from Disney Castle.   
  
Confidently, Donald walked up to a brass pipe situated near the entrance. "Hello up there! Donald Duck to launch crew! Anytime you're ready!"  
  
From the command center above, one of the members of the launch crew, a chipmunk with a black nose who Donald always mixed up the name of, sent an okay signal at him, while his companion, a nearly identical chipmunk with a red nose, whose name Donald could not remember either, pulled a lever that started the rumbling of machinery. From some hidden door, a line of mechanical hands emerged, picking up Goofy, Donald, and Jiminy in turn. Not to be left behind, Pluto leaped up and grabbed hold of the last hand, boarding the ship at the last moment.  
  
The ship that the launch crew had prepared for the journey was small, though roomy enough for its crew of two and a dog. The cockpit even had an extra seat, presumably for King Mickey when they found him. Donald settled himself in the seat nearest the window and felt the metal click as he fastened his seatbelt. Donald allowed himself one last glance out the window and a happy wave goodbye to Daisy and the queen while he prepared himself for the journey ahead.  
  
Finally, feeling the weight of the other's impatience on his shoulders, he pointed forward and gave the command. "Blast off!"  
  
One of the chipmunks pressed the button, and Donald leaned back in his seat, preparing for a swift forward motion. At the last minute, a sign in front of the ship blinked, revealing a large down arrow. The wizard had only a second to gather his stomach and his sense of foreboding before the ship dropped through a hole that had appeared just below them. Just when Donald thought he would succumb to motion sickness, the ship emerged from the bottom of the planet and slowed its descent.  
  
Donald took advantage of the ship's slowing and grabbed the controls, preparing to steer the ship on course and full speed ahead toward its first destination: Traverse Town.  
  
***  
  
Umm...long time between updates, ne? *commits seppuku* I have been an awful, awful author. Yeah, the next part still only has 2 pages, and I was home for about a month... My only excuse was that the PS2 sucked my soul from its shell, and I found myself unable to let go of the controller long enough to go onto the laptop in the next room over. Yeah, both FFX and FFX-2 were part of my Christmas haul, and I only had a month to enjoy them... excuses, excuses.  
  
*shrugs* I'm back at college, and the laptop now has my full attention.  
  
Special thanks to Koorino Megumi who edits, beta-reads and puts up with my general worthless whinings.  
  
Naela: Hmm... I think this part probably answers the question of whether the Disney characters have a role.  
  
To everyone else... thanks for reviewing. Sorry, I don't have much else to say. Except that those are some interesting ideas on the pathway...hmm... we shall have to see. 


	6. Out on the Town

Part Five: Out on the Town  
  
It was late, or early, when Sora finally woke up from his strange dream. Leaning his aching head against the stone wall, he noticed a smattering of stars blinking down at him from the narrow gap between the tall buildings. The moon had disappeared, having set long ago, or maybe never having risen at all in this strange place. The illumination that fell across the streets and the buildings that he could see was a warm yellow-orange, not unlike the bonfires that were lit on Destiny Islands on festival nights.  
  
Shaking his head to clear it, Sora grabbed hold of one of the crates stacked beside him and pulled himself up to his feet, only to find that he had to slump against the boxes for support. Had the past night really drained so much out of him?  
  
None of that now, he thought, realizing not for the first time that he was on another world. Keeping one hand on the wall to steady himself, he crept through the narrow street, away from the dead end wall of the alleyway and towards what promised to be an open area of this new world. Already he noticed the differences between his familiar island and this new place. While the buildings were not much taller than the two or three story huts he had grown up seeing, they were built of stone and neat planks of wood that cris-crossed a washed plaster surface. Compared to these, the thatched huts and driftwood towers of Destiny islands looked primitive. Pulling his black jacket around him, he shivered slightly as he noticed another difference. Traverse Town was much cooler, temperature-wise at least.  
  
It was also more crowded, he observed as he walked out of the alleyway and looked over the town square that lay at the bottom of a set of stairs. People rushed back and forth, jostling each other and yelling various things. Tents were set up along all the walls, leaving openings only where there were doors to go through and one where there seemed to be a restaurant of some sort. There had to be hundreds of people in that town square, and the more awed part of him raised that estimate to thousands. Back when he was little, still young enough for his mom to drag him with her to the mainland on market days, he had seen the throngs of shoppers in the streets stretching out for what seemed to be miles. Even that exaggerated memory paled in comparison to the sight before him.  
  
How would he find his friends in this mess? Actually, he thought as the some of the crowd migrated towards him and a random person jostled his still-sore body, perhaps a more important question would be how would he avoid getting crushed? Just behind him, a neon sign glowed and drew his attention to the answer. A shop just a few feet away could provide shelter and a place to think before he made his next move.  
  
The jingle of a bell welcomed Sora as he pushed open the wooden door and entered the shop, heaving a sigh of relief to be away from the masses in the square. While a few people browsed the glass cases filled with what appeared to be jewelry and a few people huddled around the fireplace, there was enough breathing room to suit Sora, who was already missing the open skies of his home island. He sat on one of the benches at the back of the store and observed the people milling around, absorbing the reality of his situation, whatever that happened to be.  
  
"Hey kid!" A gruff voice pulled Sora out of his thoughts before he fully sank into them. He looked up, wondering who could be calling him in this place. Most of the people in the store were focused on other things, but a heavy-set blond man behind the counter was looking intently at him. He was probably the owner of the store, and apparently he was the one calling Sora.  
  
"I'm not a kid," Sora answered back, determined to keep some of his pride while adjusting to these strange surroundings. "The name's Sora. So, gramps, where are we?"  
  
"Hey, don't call me gramps. The name's Cid. You lost or something?" Sora saw Cid's eyes observing him, pausing for an extended time on the sword at Sora's side. Self-consciously, Sora touched the hilt of his sword, though he didn't actually grab it.  
  
"No!" he denied before the more sensible side of him protested. "Okay...well...maybe. This is the mainland, right?"  
  
"Mainland, kid? What are you talking about? This is Traverse Town."  
  
Traverse Town. At least Sora now had a name to attach to this strange place. It wasn't much to go by, but it was a step forward in understanding his situation. "So if this isn't the mainland, are we still on an island, gramps?"  
  
Rubbing his temple before answering, Cid let out a sigh. "I don't know about any island. Are you sure you didn't hit your head on something when your world was–"  
  
Sora cut Cid off before the shop owner could continue on that subject. "Anyway, have you seen my friends? There are two of them, Riku and Kairi. Riku, he's about yay tall–" Sora held his hand slightly above his head, "And he has silver-colored hair. Kairi's kinda cute, her hair goes down to about here--" Sora made a gesture just below his shoulder. "--It's sort of a reddish color. And she's got these really pretty blue eyes that--" He cut himself off, realizing that he was starting to sound like a boy with a crush. "You know, never mind."  
  
Cid's rough features twisted to form a grin-- The first time he had actually smiled in the very short time Sora had met him. "Hmm... with all the new arrivals, I can't really say that I remember meeting anyone like that. Say," Cid looked as if he were finally getting around to asking what he really wanted to ask. "You know how to use that?" He pointed towards Sora's sword.  
  
Sora nodded hesitantly, and Cid was about to say more when a tall, bony woman stormed over and interrupted him. "Oh no you don't, Mr. Cid! Honestly, can you be more shameless? You leave the poor boy alone. His world newly destroyed and all. You Trinity folk have no sense of compassion, do you?"  
  
"Hey, let the boy hear–"  
  
The bony woman interrupted before Cid could continue. "Let the boy have some clue what's going on before you ask him to fight for you guys." She walked over and grabbed Sora by the arm, which he jerked away immediately.  
  
"You don't have to worry about me, I can take care of myself. I just wanna find my friends," Sora said more coolly than he had intended. He didn't mean to be so rude, but the company of this woman seemed worse than Cid and anything those "Trinity folk" could throw at him – whoever they were. Besides, if he were being completely honest with himself, he didn't want to know exactly what had happened yet. That would mean facing the very real possibility that he couldn't go home and that maybe there wasn't even a home to go to anymore.  
  
Cid shot a questioning look at Sora, who stared back at him. The shop owner just shrugged, turned to the woman, and said, "Give the boy a choice at least." Addressing Sora now, Cid set down his case. "Look, if you want to find your friends, chances are they've been scattered among the worlds. Now, the way I see it, if you can handle that weapon of yours and help us out, we can send you to those other worlds."  
  
He stopped then, giving Sora a chance to think about his words, until the woman barged in with her own opinion. "You can't go with them. You're just a kid. You'd have to fight against those hideous creatures!"  
  
Sora waited for her to finish, although he had to admit that he hadn't really been listening. "That's not a problem. I'm strong, and I have to find Riku and Kairi! We've always wanted to see other worlds, but more importantly, we wanted to see them together. I'll follow him and see what this is about," he responded.  
  
"But..." the woman protested, grabbing Sora by the arm again. For someone who looked to be all bones, she still held on with a death grip even as Sora stiffened and and tried to stop himself from struggling to escape. "You need to know what's going on!"   
  
Red-faced, Cid finally yelled back at the woman, "We can tell him exactly what's going on, Ms. Seri. And we can help him find his friends."  
  
Seri let go of Sora and stormed back to the counter. "You're going to send him off to collect more refugees. You're going to bring more of the defenseless to Traverse Town. We're overcrowded, overrun."  
  
Sora's right hand clenched the hilt of his sword. These people he had met were talking about him as if he weren't even present. The way they talked, they obviously had his interests pretty far down on their lists of priorities, especially the woman. He thought he could listen to them argue and watch as a scene ensued and the patrons crowded around to observe. The rest of the people in the store never bothered turning around though. Obviously whatever problem Seri, the woman, had with Cid and Trinity caused recurring confrontations if the townspeople could just ignore it. Sora couldn't, especially if they were arguing about him. He wasn't a kid anymore; he didn't have to put up with it.  
  
"Stop it!" he yelled, leaping up from his place on the bench and going to the counter. "I'm going with Cid to hear about how I can get out and search for my friends. I'm not going to be something else for you guys to fight about."  
  
Seri stopped in the middle of a tirade, glared at both Cid and Sora, and stormed out the door. Cid looked Sora in the eyes before he lowered his gaze. "Sorry, kid. Times are desperate, and there's really no place in this town for softies anymore. I'll take you to Trinity Headquarters, and they'll see what they can do for you, once the moogle arrives to take over shop duties.  
  
Almost on cue, Sora heard the sound of shifting above and a little to the right of him, as if a piece of the ceiling were being moved. From a newly-revealed hole in the ceiling at the back of the store, a wide wooden ladder clanked to the ground, bouncing a couple of times before it finally settled.  
  
As Sora looked up, a small white creature climbed down from the upper level. Short-limbed with a large torso and head, the creature looked nothing like anything Sora had ever seen before. From behind Sora could see both the ridiculously small purple wings sprouting from its back and its cat ears. A large red thing sprouted from its head and bobbed as the creature descended the ladder.  
  
It landed with a bounce and turned around, allowing Sora to look at the front of this strange creature. Its nose was a large pink ball, and the red, bouncing thing appeared to be an antenna from the front. Overall, it was a white, round, catlike-creature even stranger than he had thought when he had just seen it climbing down the ladder. He walked over to the creature and stared at it in wonder. Lacking any better judgment, he poked the antenna and asked Cid, "What is this?"  
  
The creature jumped back and said angrily, "Don't touch the pom-pom, kupo! Why does everyone keep touching the pom-pom?"   
  
Cid laughed at the interaction between Sora and the creature. "That's a moogle, kid. I take it you don't have those where you come from. Sorry," he apologized to the moogle, "I don't think he's ever seen one of you before."  
  
The moogle walked behind the counter, which hid everything but the tips of its ears and the pom-pom. "No problem, Kupo. Here's the item you requested." There was a jangling sound as the moogle placed something in Cid's hand.  
  
"Thank you." Cid bowed his head before emerging from behind the counter. "So, ready to go?"  
  
Sora nodded and headed towards the exit before Cid pointed to the ladder. "It's less crowded that way." For someone of his large frame, Cid moved up the ladder quickly, and soon enough he was on the second floor calling for Sora to follow. Sora scrambled up the ladder as if he were in a race against Riku.  
  
Sora had expected the room above to be yet another shop filled with more cases of jewelry, but from the waves of uncomfortable heat radiating from the upper fireplace, Sora realized that it was something different altogether. Moogles bustled around carrying crystals and metals of all shapes and colors. One carried what looked to be a glass blower, while another hammered away at an anvil, sending sparks flying in all directions. A few paused from their work to wave at Cid and Sora, but most were focused intently on their tasks.  
  
"That's synthesis, kid. Moogles are masters at the art. Don't see how they can stand working in this environment myself." Cid hurried to the exit, and Sora followed, diving back into the crowds he had hoped to avoid. The shopkeeper barreled through the crowd, and Sora followed in his wake. Fortunately, the crowd thinned as they approached a large wooden door.  
  
Cid stopped there and motioned for Sora to stand next to him. "Hold out your hand," he instructed. Obeying, Sora held out his left hand to find Cid wrapping a spiked chain around his wrist. The sharp points dug into the skin near where the main veins were located, just short of drawing blood, and Sora winced. Immediately, a pounding feeling rose in his chest before it died away. His breath suddenly felt shallow, and his hand started tingling.  
  
"What's...going..." Sora fought to make his limited air supply form the question.  
  
"You're still awake? You're tougher than you look. I'll explain later. Just understand that this is necessary, and we should get through the next district quickly." He pushed open the door and called for Sora to follow him.  
  
Sora couldn't observe much of this district. Just that it was as abandoned as the first one was packed and that there seemed to be many more buildings. He concentrated on the tingling feeling spreading throughout his extremities and the slowness with which his blood seemed to be flowing through his veins.  
  
His mind became lazy, and his feet moved more of their own accord, usually more to one side or the other, rather than straight on the stone path. Occasionally, Cid's voice cut through the haze, instructing Sora to turn or be careful or steady himself.  
  
"We're almost there. Can you keep it together for a bit longer?" The words echoed in Sora's fuzzy thoughts as he stumbled over his feet and nearly fell and would have fallen over if it weren't for the narrow wall in the alley that he could lean against.  
  
"Come on, Sora." It wasn't a plea; it was a challenge. And the voice that he heard reminded him of sword fights on the island. "Giving up already? Never thought you were that weak. Guess I was wrong."  
  
Huh? What was Riku doing here in this abandoned section of the city? "Riku..." He steadied himself and looked around. His friend stood just a few feet away, slouching casually and smirking at Sora as he watched him struggle to move forward. Sora had to make it a few more feet, just to prove to Riku that he was just as tough, even if he had never been as brawny as Riku.  
  
He shuffled towards his goal, each step taking enormous effort, but with this friend goading him on, Sora couldn't just give up. As he came within arm's length of Riku, the silver-haired boy held out his hand for Sora to grab onto. With great effort, Sora lifted his bad arm, the one on the side the wall wasn't supporting, and reached out for Riku. Sora's hand passed through Riku, and his friend wavered before he disappeared, little more than a passing mirage.  
  
Sora shook his head in an attempt to clear it. Riku was gone now, and Sora guessed that his friend had never stood in these streets. He stopped where Riku had been and looked forward. A stone door, not like the one he had seen in his dream or on his island, but an ordinary one, stood at the end of the street. That far he had to go. It was only a few yards away.  
  
The slight breeze from a person briskly passing by him caught Sora's attention, as did a flash of auburn hair and a familiar laugh. Kairi walked by, her hands clasped behind her back as she turned to Sora. "Come on, Sora. You promised me that we'd see other worlds together. You can't fall behind now."  
  
Even after the illusionary Riku, Sora never thought to question the reality of this Kairi. She smiled like the real one, and she leaned next to the door he needed to walk through the way Kairi leaned against a wall whenever she watched Sora and Riku duel. If his body would just listen to his mind, he would have run to her.  
  
"Kairi!" Sora lifted his hand to wave at her. "I'm so glad you're safe. Could you...um... give me a hand?"  
  
When her deep blue eyes focused on him, she was no longer smiling. "Sora, come here. Please."  
  
Sora's feet carried him of their own accord to Kairi, his mind no longer clear enough to give the orders. The walk seemed to take hours despite the short distance, and even acting on their own, his legs barely seemed to move.  
  
"Sora, please, I can't wait much longer." Her voice seemed to have lost the spirit it usually had and was now as dull and cool as it had been the night the door had opened.  
  
"I'm coming. I can't go any faster." He really couldn't go faster, not with those lead legs and arms of his.  
  
Kairi nodded regretfully, and a couple tears glittered in the corners of her eyes. Without speaking again, but waving slightly to Sora, she turned her back to him and headed through the door.  
  
"Kairi!" Sora called, and he could feel his speech slurring, "Wait..." Just a few more steps and he would reach the door. Always it was just a few more steps. One, two, three, he felt his heavy feet pound the cobblestones before he nearly fell forward. The wall caught him, though, and the thought that he had reached the end of his hard journey passed through his hazy mind. He scooted sideways until he found a part of the wall that was set back from the rest.  
  
This was a door, Sora reminded himself, and Kairi had just passed beyond it. Testing it with his little remaining strength, he found the door gave too easily beneath his weight, and he stumbled rather than walked through it.  
  
Kairi waited on the other side, though she barely acknowledged Sora as she walked into a nearby house. He followed her in the frustrating, heavy-limbed way he now walked. In his blurred vision, he saw nothing but his goal: the entrance of the small house. He bolted for it at a turtle's pace, and reaching the door, he leaned against it again, hoping that his weight would be enough to push it in. His fingers were too numb to actually turn a knob, if that was what was required. Sora wasn't really sure if he still had fingers anymore for all that he could feel or move them.  
  
While the door didn't give way under his weight, someone must have heard him and opened the it because there was suddenly nothing supporting his weight, and he tripped. The sight of a floor rushing up to greet him was the last thing he noticed before the blur that was his vision finally faded to black.  
  
***  
  
Whoa! This was not what I had planned. This was supposed to be random, boring filler. Well, okay, it's still random, boring filler, but it's completely different from the random, boring filler I had planned. Headache inducing filler, I might add. I apologize for any lack of quality, I'll try to do better next time, I promise.  
  
Special thanks to Koorino Megumi for editing this, and kicking me into shape when it came to Sora's characterization.  
  
Also thanks to Naela, who agreed to look at the rough-draft, even though I cleaned it up without her input. Sorry to have bugged you when you were busy. And yes, I was laughing at your last review.  
  
VixettaremIx: (I think I spelled that right). Thanks. I was going for Disney Character with more emphasis on 'character' and less on 'Disney.'  
  
Thanks for all those that responded. ^_^ See you next time. Eventually. 


	7. A Little Information

Part Six: A Little Information  
  
The sounds of random chattering dragged Sora back into consciousness. The throbbing pain in his hands, feet, and head kept him there. Light flooded his eyes as he opened them, requiring him to squint and aggravating his headache. He dragged himself into a sitting position, wondering since when his arms and legs had started trembling with the slightest exertion. At least he had succeeded, he thought when he finally pulled himself up. The surface was slightly raised, giving way as he weakly bounced on it. Someone must have put him on a bed after the fall had knocked him out. Had it been Kairi? Had she taken care of him?  
  
What had happened? His memories of his short journey were fuzzy at best. Riku and Kairi had been there to help him. Actually no, that new person he had met, Cid, had been there first, wrapping something around his hand and then leading him into the new place. He vaguely remembered the older man giving him instructions and encouragement as he stumbled his way towards this place, wherever 'this place' actually was. But just as Riku appeared for the first time, Cid had abandoned Sora, leaving him to fend for himself for most of the journey, or what felt like most of the journey, at least.  
  
The chattering died down just as his eyes adjusted to the light inside the house. Cid was standing with a group of three other people, his back turned to Sora, but neither Kairi nor Riku was anywhere to be seen. Other people were scattered about in this sparsely furnished room. Along one wall, boxes were piled to the ceiling, giving it a disorganized, just-moved-in look while the wall opposite Sora had a long row of tables lined up near it. Most of the house's occupants sat at these tables, gossiping among themselves and shuffling papers. The bed he was sitting on was hardly new or comfortable, covered only by a single white sheet and a flat-looking pillow.  
  
One of the people Cid was standing with, a brown-haired man with shielded brown eyes and a gash across the forehead, regarded Sora with a nod and spoke with his companions: a dark-haired women who constantly fidgeted as if possessed by an enormous bundle of energy, and a composed, brown-haired woman who radiated a peaceful presence across the house.  
  
The dark-haired woman bounced over to Sora, her dark blue eyes regarding him sharply. "I don't know, Cid, he looks pretty scrawny to me... What do you think, Squall?" She turned back to the people gathered around Cid.  
  
"It's Leon," the brown-haired man corrected automatically before he offered his opinion. "He certainly looks like a weakling, but who knows? Looks can be deceiving." He approached Sora, his eyes catching on the sword at Sora's side. "You wield a weapon. The question is: can you use it?"  
  
Cid offered his input. "The boy says he can, and I believe him."  
  
The woman standing near him nodded her agreement. "Let's not forget, he managed to get all the way through the Second District with the Silencer on. He's got a hidden strength." Before she went to join the others in observing him, she poured a glass of water and handed it to Sora. "I'm sure that with some cool water and some recovery time, he'll be all right."  
  
Gratefully, Sora accepted the glass and gulped down its contents. The cool water really did calm the throbbing in his head, as did the woman's concern for him, though it did remind him of the fact that he hadn't eaten for a long time. Last time he had eaten had been a snack right before he left his house – cookies and milk. Actually, it had been one cookie, as his mother had been fixing dinner at the time and warning Sora about ruining his appetite. With an undignified churning sound, his stomach reminded him that it had been too long since he had eaten a decent meal.  
  
The woman who had handed him the glass of water smiled at him. "I guess we should send someone to get him a meal while we explain things. Brant!" she called to one of the clerks in the corner.   
  
A boy, slightly older than Sora, walked forward. Taking his narrow-brimmed hat off his head and placing it over his heart in a sweeping motion, he bowed to the woman. "Lady Aerith, I am yours to command." The tone of reverence in Brant's voice was so exaggerated that Sora couldn't help but smile. The black-haired woman crossed her bare arms and shook her head, presumably amused by the display. Cid's face remained blank though, while Squall -er, Leon- scowled slightly.  
  
Aerith just smiled gently at the boy. "Would you mind going over to Seri's line and getting some food for this boy? He's a new refugee."  
  
Those last four words seemed to be the only explanation that the boy needed. "I understand, milady. I shall traverse through this district, battle my way through the press of the crowd, and undertake the trial of the acid-tongued harpy. And milady, I shall return triumphantly with the prize in hand." Brant bowed again and exited the house with a theatrical closing of the door.  
  
The black-haired woman grinned at Aerith. "I think you have a fan club. We're going to have to watch out for that one. Right, Squall?"  
  
Leon stepped forward. "It's Leon, and we should concentrate on more important things. Like explaining what's going on and finding out whether he's fit to become a part of Trinity."  
  
"Oh, right!" The black-haired lady turned to Sora and began speaking. "This right here is Trinity Headquarters, and we–" She gestured to herself, Cid, Aerith, and Leon, "–are most of the leaders of Trinity. I'm the Great Ninja Yuffie, leader of the Intelligence Division of Trinity. Squall, currently going by Leon, is the leader of the Combat Division. Aerith is the leader of the Supply and Healing Division. Cid works as leader for the Transportation division. And Cloud leads the Refugee Division. Our mission as Trinity members is to protect the defenseless from the Heartless and hopeful–"  
  
"The Heartless?" Sora asked, puzzled.  
  
"Yes. Those without hearts," Aerith explained, "Those that are the essence of darkness."  
  
"They come out of nowhere. They feed off of people's hearts, and they're attracted to the darkness in people's hearts," Leon continued, "The overrun a world, and when they find the core, it disappears."  
  
Sora choked up at this. "Is that what happened to my island? Is it...gone? There was this door... and this storm...and I don't remember much after that. I had to fight these Heartless, but afterwards I was sucked into this big black cloud thing, and ... I must have ended up here." When he cared to look at the evidence, it made a grim sort of sense that his world had vanished in the storm. Sora could see the vortex that had swallowed him sucking in a whole island.   
  
Lean shrugged. "Who knows. No one has ever seen what happens to a world once it disappears. At least, no one who has lived to tell about it."  
  
Aerith added in some more information. "Most of the refugees who arrive these days come through Trinity. Very few actually come from worlds that have disappeared. You're the first in a long while."  
  
"Why bring them to this world?" Sora asked, feeling like he was missing something.  
  
Yuffie pulled a chair from the table and sat backwards in it, leaning towards Sora. "Well, we don't know much about the Heartless, but we do know about the doors."  
  
"Doors?" Sora asked, his mind travelling to the cavern where he had played when he was a child. He remembered the wooden door that had confounded Riku and him since they were old enough to explore the island on their own, the one that had never opened until the night of the storm. "Like the one that I saw on my island that never opened until right before the island disappeared?"   
  
"Exactly," Yuffie confirmed, fidgeting with the scarf that dangled from her neck. "You see, there used to be barriers between all the worlds, which protected them from the Heartless, but eleven years ago, all the barriers crumbled, and the Heartless started to appear, but it's only been in the past two years that they've become strong enough to threaten all the worlds."  
  
"Anyway," Aerith said, gently steering the conversation back to Sora's question. "Every world has a door, and some have locks that the Heartless have to release before they can cause darkness to consume the world. Traverse Town not only has a lock, but the Heartless seem to be unable to find the door or the lock, and so we can defend the refugees effectively, as long as they stay in the first District. That's where Cid's shop is," she clarified.  
  
"Ahh..." Sora said, reeling from information overload. Hopefully Brant would be back soon and the question-and-answer session could end, though he one more question. "Umm... Cid, what was that thing you put on me?" Sora shook his still-sore wrist, and he could see where the teeth of the device had made indentations in his skin.  
  
"Sorry about that, kid. But we couldn't risk getting ambushed by Heartless when I didn't know if you could handle yourself in a battle. The Silencer isn't pleasant, but it's a way to keep someone from attracting Heartless to them. Most people usually lose consciousness after we put it on, but you managed to make it all the way here." Cid looked like he was going to say more, but after a quick glance at the less-than-approving faces of his companions, he decided not to.  
  
"Anyway," Aerith said, "We're going to need to get you registered, at least as a refugee. Have you thought about joining?"  
  
Sora nodded. "Cid told me that you guys could help me find my friends, Riku and Kairi. Have you seen them?"  
  
"Whoa, whoa." Yuffie laughed at Sora's impatience. "If Cid thinks we can help you, then they're probably not on this world. But don't worry, there are always other worlds to search, and we always need people to help search them."  
  
Leon stepped in, "Perhaps we should see if he's fit for refugee duty first. It's a lot tougher than just patrolling First District and clearing the other two every once in a while. Most people either give up quickly or don't return."  
  
When he heard Leon's words, Sora immediately thought of a challenge, and the kid inside him who had grinned at the thought of serious challenges and sought out monsters, the one who had mostly died two years ago, spoke up: "Well, I'm not afraid. I won't give up, not until I find my friends."  
  
The corners of Leon's mouth turned up slightly, staying there barely a second before they returned to their usual flat line. "So, you think you have what it takes?"  
  
Sora nodded. "I fought my way through the island. I fought the Heartless, and I fought this big monster, too."  
  
Leon shook his head. "I just can't believe it. A kid like you..." He trailed off, leaving Sora to wonder what the Trinity leader was thinking.  
  
Aerith offered a hand to Sora. "We need to get you registered. Do you think you can get up by yourself?"  
  
When Aerith mentioned her concern about Sora's health, he realized he hadn't really thought about it since he had started talking to them all. There was still some soreness in his left wrist, and his head was reeling as much from information overload as from any physical cause. As he pulled himself to a standing position, he noticed that his limbs ached slightly, though they didn't tremble as they had right after he had woken up. He stretched, enjoying the feeling of life returning to his muscles. "I'm fine."  
  
She smiled back at him. "That's good. The clerk's over by the table. She'll take care of getting you registered." Aerith motioned to a pale girl about Sora's age, who waved to him. As he walked over to where the clerk waited, his body protested the movement with creaks and shooting aches that made him feel like a sixty-year-old man rather than a sixteen-year-old boy. His progress was slow, he knew, and he gave an apologetic smile as he reached the table.  
  
The clerk tapped the pointed end of her quill repeatedly on the table as if she had been waiting impatiently, but as Sora approached, she returned his smile with one of her own. She leaned forward and looked up at Sora. "Hiya! You new here?"  
  
Sora nodded. "Aerith said that you'd help get me registered."  
  
At those words, the clerk opened a large book that lay in front of her and dipped her quill into a bottle of ink. "Of course," she said in what Sora hoped only resembled a flirtatious tone. "I'm here to help. Oh, and I'm Lana, by the way."  
  
"I'm Sora," he answered.  
  
Lana scrawled something in the book and then twirled a strand of her hair with the hand not holding a quill. "Ahh... Sora..." she sighed, an absentminded smile crossing her face.  
  
"Lana!" Leon shouted, cutting the clerk's fawning short, "We don't have time for this. Get to work."  
  
"Ye-yes, sir," Lana said, quickly averting her eyes from Sora and paying close attention to the book. "World of origin and age," she mumbled, taking quick peeks up at Sora.  
  
Sora had never really thought of what his world was called. Usually he just thought of it as his island, his home. What had the maps called it? He remembered it having a somewhat romantic name– something like Destiny. As he thought about it, Destiny Island sounded right. "Umm... Destiny Island, I think. Oh, and I'm sixteen."  
  
Another set of scrawls across the page and more sighing brought Lana to the next question: "Are you going to be joining Trinity?"  
  
He had assumed he would. Not only to find his friends, which was the most important thing, but also to go on adventures. From what he could tell, the refugees all lived in the packed First District and didn't actually spend their days doing anything. Cid, Aerith, and the rest of them were all accomplishing something, and he could travel to other worlds. "Yeah, if they let me." Feeling generous, he flashed a smile at her. "They said they can help me find my friends."  
  
"Your ... friends?" Lana seemed to be distracted, but her wide-eyed gaze prompted Sora to go on.  
  
"Yeah. Hey, if you take care of the registration, maybe you've seen them. Riku, he's a year older than I am."  
  
The look in Lana's eyes grew distant, and her voice sounded like she was in a completely different world. "Older? Is he taller than you? A bit more muscular?"  
  
"Um yeah....he's got this grayish hair and greenish eyes." Sora had an idea that he wouldn't like where this was leading, but if it would help him find Riku, he supposed he could put up with it.  
  
The slow dreamy smile that Lana had worn when she had first started talking to Sora returned. "Grayish, like a silvery color and eyes like the color of the sea?"  
  
It was time to get to the point. "I guess... I never really thought about it before. Have you seen him?"  
  
"No," Lana sighed, "But I really want to. He sounds so hot. Tell me more."  
  
Placing one hand behind his head in an embarrassed gesture, Sora faked a laugh. "I don't think so. Anyway, my other friend is Kairi, and she's my age."  
  
Lana tapped the tip of her quill on the book, leaving little dots of ink in the margins, while she rested her chin on her other hand. "Oh, you know, you're the only one who's come recently. We don't get many new refugees these days." At that she grew silent as if watching Sora for a response.  
  
Sora wondered what he could say to that statement and the many possible interpretations it held. "So, you're saying that they might be..." He trailed off before the last word, "gone," had a chance to escape.  
  
With a careless shrug of her shoulders and the closing of the record book, Lana replied, "Who knows? There still are other worlds out there. I bet they're fine and they're waiting on another world."  
  
The sound of a door slamming and Brant's voice calling from the entrance ended the conversation. "Lady Aerith, I have returned from my perilous quest with the bounty firmly in my grasp."  
  
A spicy smell wafted throughout the house, drawing Sora's attention back to the gnawing feeling of hunger in his stomach. Sora imagined that the churning sound it made was loud enough to stop everyone's conversation and turn their attention to him.  
  
"Here you go, lad." Brant set a brown sack on the table in front of Sora. "You face a road fraught with peril, and you must be well-nourished for the journey that lies before you."  
  
Sora tried not to look too desperate as he tore into the paper bag and obtained the contents inside: a piece of chicken, a mixture of corn, peppers, and other vegetables that seemed to be the source of the spicy scent, and a sealed cup of some liquid, probably water. He grabbed the food and practically inhaled it as he worked. The chicken was bland, and the vegetables practically coated in spices. However, the two seemed to balance out when a bite of one was immediately followed by the other, with occasional sips of water to wash everything down.  
  
When nothing remained of his meal but bones and grains of spices, Sora finally turned his attention from the food. Except for Yuffie, none of the others were even paying attention to Sora, and Yuffie had a knowing smile on her face.  
  
"Hey, Leon, I think our refugee is done with his meal. You should take him back to the Second District for his test mission," Yuffie said with a smile.  
  
Leon's intense eyes turned to Sora. "You best prepare yourself before we go."  
  
Sora nodded and retrieved his sword, which still lay on the bed. After having had a decent meal, he felt mostly recovered, even if his sword did feel a bit heavier than before. With his weapon in hand, he walked towards the door where Leon was waiting.  
  
"Are you ready?" the Trinity commander asked.  
  
"I'm ready." Sora put all of his intense determination into those words. He would pass this test. He would see other worlds. And most importantly, he would find his friends.  
  
"Let's go."  
  
***  
  
Author's notes: I apologize for the boringness, the confusingness and any other unpleasant 'nesses' that this chapter might have. Call it the the obligatory explain things and introduce original characters chapter. At least the next chapter will have something resembling action in it. Let me know what you think, even if it is just to bash me over the head for corrupting the canon like this.  
  
Koorino Megumi: Thank you for your editing, though you better be putting RSoD first. I don't want this humble little story to get in the way of your beautiful epic. And I'm glad that the changes really improved the characterization. I wouldn't have my beta be anything else.  
  
Naela: How come your speculation always sounds more exciting than what I actually write?   
  
Ginger Ninja: I hope it's different. A lot has happened in two years.  



	8. Trial by Heartless

Part Seven: Trial by Heartless  
  
Sora exited the Trinity Headquarters and was immediately dazzled by the bright lights that twinkled throughout Third District. Their sources, glass lamps and bulbs, were the same as that of the warm yellow lights that had illuminated First District, but these radiated a cool yellow light that reminded Sora of stars. A little to his left, a heavy wooden door led back to Second District, according to the glowing sign above the door. The walls on the side of the Second District were constructed of the same materials as the First District: warm wood and rough cobbled stones. To his right, a smooth wall, made of some type of molded stone, blocked his view of the rest of the area. Straight ahead of him, stairs led down to another part of the district, and it was down these that Leon went.  
  
Sora followed, his eyes absorbing every piece of this new world. Third District was quite different from First District and probably the second one as well, although his memories of that place were little more than a haze and a dull throb. He assumed, though, that Second District must be similar to the First District--warm lights, and wood-and-stone buildings. Third District appeared to be completely different, probably constructed sometime after the other two.  
  
Sora reached the bottom of the stairs, and Leon, who had been waiting stoically until then led him to the main part of Third District. A few people milled around the shining square, lit by those twinkling lights that had first captured Sora's attention as he walked out of Trinity Headquarters. Unlike First District, where the spaces between people were small enough that walking just a few feet had been a fight through the crowd, Third District was much less crowded. A few people gathered around a brightly-lit fountain.  
  
Strong fingers grabbed his arm, and Sora shook himself out of his mesmerized state. Leon pointed to a door just to the right of Sora. "We go there," he informed Sora as he ignored the abundance of stimuli around him.  
  
"Right!" Sora said, and Leon let go of the boy's arm. Various people, presumably members of Trinity, waved to Leon as they passed through the door.  
  
And back into First District. The press of the crowd was as suffocating as it had been earlier. If anything, it was more crowded. Hardly any gaps existed among the unwashed bodies packed into the village square. The stench of a thousand people's sweat, the dim sounds of chatter around him, and the claustrophobic atmosphere enveloped Sora, making him dizzy from sensory overload.  
  
"I can't believe that a kid like you is actually going to try out for Trinity. Usually applicants can stand up to a few refugees," Leon said, dragging Sora through the crowd. Various elbows poked at the youth as he tried to navigate through the mob. The leader, on the other hand, appeared in control; where the crowd converged onto Sora, they parted for Leon. Only by riding the wake left by Leon did Sora manage to navigate the distance between the exit from the Third District and the entrance to the Second.  
  
As it had the first time Sora had approached the door, the crowd fell back. The heavy wooden doors that opened to the deserted part of town were like the closet doors he and many of the children on the island had feared when they were very young. Monsters, or Heartless, lurked behind them, and even those who scoffed at the possibility never dared to test their hypothesis.  
  
Sora waited for Leon to put on the chain that Cid had used earlier, but the leader shook his head. "No. This time, you fight."  
  
Sora automatically stood up straighter, like a soldier waiting for an order from his commander, which he essentially was. A combination of fear and pride stirred within him, the fear from having to fight opponents he knew he could barely stand up to, and pride from knowing that he would fight. He drew his sword, eager to have at the Heartless in the Second District.   
  
"Are you ready?" Leon asked, cracking a small smirk as his eyes focused on Sora brandishing his sword.  
  
"I'm ready," Sora said with more confidence than he felt. Some potions were still tucked safely in his pockets, and this time he would remember to actually use them when they were needed.  
  
"Then," Leon said, opening the door and revealing the deserted district, "your mission is to go in there, clean out the district, the alleyway, and the gizmo shop, and then return to headquarters. Good luck." Without another word, Leon turned back, presumably to take the easy way to headquarters.  
  
Alone and facing the the dreaded Second District, Sora took a deep breath and stepped across the threshold, waiting for something shadowy to jump out and claw at him. Nothing attacked. A mechanical man tipping his hat cut through the stillness that threatened to swallow the place, and Sora half-expected crickets to start chirping.  
  
How boring. Sora took another step into the town, wondering if it were actually deserted of everything, including Heartless. If that were the case, why bother–  
  
A flash of black on the edge of his vision nullified the possibility of an easy trial that had previously been given. By reflex, Sora whipped his sword out, spearing through the first Shadow with ease. There were five at most, and compared to the waves of Heartless on his island, this was play, akin to fighting a three-on-one match with Tidus, Wakka, and Selphie.  
  
He allowed himself to get caught in the rhythm of battle, advancing and retreating in stages and swinging his sword in practical patterns that sliced and stabbed the Heartless into black shreds. When the battle ended and the town returned to its former deserted state, Sora assessed his condition. He was breathing a little heavily, but his arms betrayed no sign of having been touched by claws. In small groups he could take the Heartless easily.  
  
Confident now in his abilities, Sora continued deeper in to the Second District, mapping out a plan of what he needed to do. He didn't even remember where the exit had been exactly. If he had to clean everything out, he should clear the main section first and then try the doors one at a time. He needed to find the Gizmo shop and the alleyway as well.  
  
So he formulated his battle plan: search for the exit and the other places he needed to go first, and in the meantime clean out the district. It was a simple and effective plan of action and one that could get him through the trial with as little hassle as possible. His mind made up, Sora headed right, where stairs led to the main square below and most of the doors.  
  
He reached the corner, and under the awning of a shoe store, peace shattered once again. Heartless appeared out of nowhere, and just because things couldn't be easy, they were not the same Shadows that he was used to fighting on his island. These were slightly larger and, strangely enough, wearing clothing. With the silver colored helmet covering their heads and the navy blue clothes covering the rest of their bodies, Sora could not tell whether they were Shadow Heartless in clothing or a new kind.  
  
His hesitation from observing the Heartless cost him any sort of advantage as one of them spun towards Sora, effectively clipping at him with its claws. Definitely stronger, he assessed as they counter-attacked, and better armored as well, he added to his observation. Where he was now killing the Shadows in one or two hits, these required about four before they vanished.  
  
Sora won the battle, though he had more scratches to show for it than he would have liked. After the next fight, he should definitely drink a potion. For now though, duty and adrenaline called for him to continue on with his exploration. No Heartless attacked on the stairs, and Sora took that time to take a closer look at the lower level. Just under the door leading back to First District, a fountain bubbled happily, ignoring the fact that this place was supposed to be completely silent. Beyond the fountain was a heavy-looking wood door which appeared to lead out of the district.  
  
More Heartless attacked as Sora reached the bottom of the stairs. These were just more Shadows, and Sora disposed of them easily, almost playing as his sword slashed effortlessly through them. A battle-energized Sora rushed through the lower section of Traverse Town, hacking through the hordes of Shadows without sweating in the least and occasionally encountering the more resilient soldier-type Heartless. The Soldiers forced Sora to drink more potions than he would have otherwise, and by the time he discovered the niche that led to the Third District and another door, which led to a house occupied by two melancholy spotted dogs, he was already running low on the vials of lime green liquid.  
  
He backtracked through the cleared-out lower portion and exited the district through the door near the fountain. The alleyway consisted of a narrow walkway pressed against buildings on one side. The drain system–Sora would have said sewer, but the water was as clear as that in the waterfalls back on his island– took up about half the walking space and led into a dark hole guarded by bars.  
  
The Heartless here were few in number, and Sora hardly bothered with potions. In one niche, a red and gold box peeked out from behind a few barrels, and he reasoned that if this place were deserted, there was no one to miss the contents of one box.  
  
Not an adventure without winning treasures, Sora reasoned as he approached the box. He pushed the barrels aside and looked down at the small, tiny little temptation. Someone owned it, his conscience reminded him, seemingly intent on ruining Sora's fun.  
In this quiet place, where the enemies were easy enough to defeat that battling instilling boredom, Sora dismissed the voice of conscience with the simplest of rationalizaitons. This was an adventure. Adventures had treasure chests to open. If the rightful owner came to claim the treasure, Sora could give it back or pay them for the merchandise. The Heartless were dropping shiny round pebbles that people in Cid's store had been flashing around. They probably had some value. Anyway, someone could claim that the treasure chest technically belonged to the Heartless? Everyone knew that vanquished enemies' treasure was the hero's to keep.  
  
Sora knelt down cautiously, half-expecting a giant monster like the one that he used to think haunted the secret place to jump out at him and engage him in battle before he could claim the treasure. When the lid yielded easily and revealed an ordinary but much-needed potion, a feeling akin to disappointment rose within him. He pocketed the potion.  
  
Another treasure chest waited above him on a nearby overhang. With the agility gained through years of climbing trees and a lower rooftop to help him, Sora jumped to the higher ledges–back balconies for hotel rooms–and to the little overhang at the end. Heartless might have appeared, but they were a nuisance quickly disposed of. For all this jumping, Sora received a sparkling stone, pretty yet useless. He pocketed it anyway, wondering if it would give him luck or if he could just sell it back to the store.  
  
He jumped down from the ledge and exited through the heavy wood door that he'd come in through. Second District was as quiet as before, and this time around it annoyed Sora more than it intimidated him.  
  
"Come out and fight!" he yelled at any Heartless that might be roaming through the district. His voice remained unheard as it echoed off the shops and houses and into the moonless sky above. He hadn't noticed how dark the first few times he entered the district, but the few gas lamps that lined the streets above him never even started to cut through the night.  
  
He raced back up the stairs and back to the brighter lamp-lined path, wondering where he would find the Gizmo Shop, the last place to clear out. Few doors in the District opened. Frightened shop owners must have locked their doors before they fled to the safety of the First District. The only building other than the hat store that stood out was a white, church-like structure, complete with a bell tower and stained windows.  
  
Curiosity compelled Sora to explore the white building. Heartless of both the Shadow and Soldier varieties sought to hinder him, and while the Shadows barely managed to get any scratches on him, the disorienting spinning attacks of the Soldiers were more effective at leaving small cuts on the exposed parts of Sora's arms and legs. Once, during a particularly careless moment, one of them almost reached Sora's throat before he managed to drive his sword right through the emblem on its little blue jumper.  
  
Perhaps he had been a bit overconfident, he admitted to himself as he walked away from that last fight. The potion he had thought he would keep in reserve came out, and the astringent green liquid ran down his throat as he approached the white building. Wherever the Gizmo shop was, the Heartless were bound to be no more difficult than the ones he'd faced before, and he could certainly face one wave without having to use a potion. It was best to go into the battle fully healed and ready for anything.  
He pushed open the wood and stained-glass door to the church and balked at the colorful machinery inside. Just to the right of him was a small brass plaque with the following inscription: "Welcome to the Gizmo Shop, kupo!"  
  
Oh.  
  
So this was where the final showdown of his trial would occur. Sora stepped forward, ready to get this mockery of a battle over and done with. His sword was already drawn and ready for whatever enemies cared to battle him. The lights flickered, making Sora slightly and appropriately nervous before they died out altogether.   
  
The low light outside still cast dim-colored patterns through the windows and onto the floor. So this was a battle in the dark, since he doubted that the Heartless would wait for him to find the power supply and turn it back on. Like the rest of this district, the Gizmo Shop was eerily silent, though the near-complete darkness prompted Sora to imagine sounds of claws scraping against the tiled floors or the ledges above. He reassured himself that it was just his imagination that was causing him to hear these sinister noises. The fight or flight reaction that had largely dissipated outside flared up again as Sora's heart pounded in his ears.  
  
Sora took another step forward into the pitch black center of the shop. He couldn't see the enemy that materialized within a few feet of him until the glowing yellow eyes had formed. A single Shadow--Sora could take care of that. He slashed at it immediately, hoping to get out of the threatening environment as quickly as possible. No stronger than the other enemies he had faced, it dissolved.  
  
His relief lived no longer than that Heartless did, however. Two more immediately took its place, and while Sora disposed of one before it fully formed, the second one managed to attack once before he could impale it and send it to join the others wherever Heartless went when they were dead.  
  
The third wave pressed on the tail-end of the second, and following some cosmic pattern, three Heartless attacked this time. Aiming to take them all out in one shot, Sora swung his sword in a long arc. The first was cut through easily, but the skin of the second resisted the blade. He withdrew it, puzzled as to why the blade wasn't going in, until the sound of metal joints rattling alerted him to the presence of soldiers.  
  
The spinning attack clipped him across the shoulder, and to add more injury to injury, the Shadow counterattacked with a claw to the face as Sora impaled it. For the first time, doubt rose within him as he panicked and tried to to destroy the soldier and the next incoming wave of Heartless--four of them, all of the Shadow variety.  
  
How long could he last? For the first time since entering the district, he questioned his ability to get through the trial. He couldn't fight wave after wave of Heartless when he couldn't even see them until they were about to attack. And as he grew more tired, they grew more powerful. The growing number of wounds and tears on his clothing testified to the growing futility of the exercise.  
  
He couldn't give up, but he couldn't go on. How many times had he been in this situation? His friends had gotten him through it. Riku and Kairi were always there to help him, just like on his first trip through the district. Maybe if Sora could call out to them, they would respond.  
  
_Think about it, Sora,_ the conjured Riku's voice hinted that the solution was obvious, _What do you have that the Heartless don't_  
  
_A heart?_ he guessed, choosing the most obvious thing. They were Heartless after all.  
  
_Exactly,_ Riku's voice condescended, _Use what you have to your advantage._  
  
The presence vanished before Sora could actually ask what Riku meant, and the time that had seemed to stop while he heard Riku in his head started up again. Shadows were on him in droves, tearing away at the fabric covering his back and chest. He sliced at the air, attacking random spots in the hope that he would catch a Heartless before it caught him.  
  
How was his heart supposed to do him any good in a battle? Sora was getting ripped to shreds, and the lack of light obviously didn't hinder the Heartless the way it did him. It wasn't the better heart that would win this fight, but the better eyes.  
  
_Sora... when your eyes fail you, trust in your heart,_ Kairi's voice whispered to him through the darkness, drowning out the sound of Heartless shuffling and screeching. Sora thought about what she was implying. His eyes widened as he realized the possible solution. Could he use his heart to navigate this battle?  
  
He closed his eyes and shut out the rabble of noise that ruined his concentration. Instead of just stabbing in random directions, he attacked where his intuition told him to. A weak blow connected with a Soldier Heartless, and Sora thrust again with more confidence this time. He sliced through it easily and used that momentum to attack the rest of the Heartless in the wave.  
  
He stopped counting the number of Heartless that appeared and merely trusted that the endless streams of battle indeed had an ending. Scratches and blows still landed, though significantly fewer in number, and while the enemies were coming in larger groups, it was no more difficult than fighting them in the streets outside.  
  
Finally, his blade hit nothing but air, and the frenzied strikes from his opponents ceased. He opened his eyes, amazed at how much brighter the factory-like shop suddenly seemed, though the light ebbed away slowly, and the shop was once again enveloped in shadow. Exhaustion set in, and for the first time since the battle had begun, all the momentary flashes of pain from the previous assaults flared up again to remind Sora that he had injuries and he needed to take care of them. Sora was alive, though, and as long as he walked away from the battle with his life and his heart still with him, he would be fine.  
  
Sora exited the Gizmo shop through the door opposite the one he had come in and started his journey back to the Third District, beaten but victorious.  
  
***  
  
A/N: Dagas needs shooting, seriously. First I take two months to actually write the darn chapter, and then it's just a bunch of boring battle scenes! ^_^ Hope it wasn't too too terrible for you all. And I thank you for your readership.  
  
Much thanks to Koorino Megumi, who as always took time out of her busy schedule and made sure that I don't publically humiliate myself with this story. Remember, there is no really good writing that gets done without a beta.  
  
*clinks on her water bottle*  
  
Ahem. I have a very, very important announcement to make. The current debate (hah!) as to what shipping Starless should support has been decided. I've looked at all the possibilities, and I realized that there is one pairing in KH that is seriously underrepresented and yet pure enough to deserve a lasting tribute to it.  
  
Sora/Palm Tree.  
  
Yes, theirs is a love that crosses several boundaries, most of which I'm sure that my gentle and exalted readership does not want to think about. And yet it endures on so many levels. As it is also the most underrepresented pairing in KH, I feel that it is my responsibility to bring awareness of this pairing.  
  
...  
  
...  
  
...  
  
You think I'm kidding, don't you?  
  
It is still technically April you know, even if it is 29 days too late. *tips hat*  
  
Until next chapter, have fun and be careful. 


	9. Initiation Rites

Part Eight: Initiation Rites  
  
Aerith and Yuffie were waiting for Sora as he entered the Third District, and Aerith, who noticed Sora's numerous cuts and wounds, rushed over, her hands glowing with a white light. After a few words chanted in a language unfamiliar to Sora, Aerith's light enveloped him. It was cool inside, like a minty-fresh breeze, and although the brightness was overwhelming, Sora was still comfortable.  
  
The glow subsided, and Sora noticed how the pains and wounds had melted away better than a potion could have made them and even as an added bonus, the various small tears in his clothes were mended.  
  
"Whoa? What?" Sora articulated as he held out his jacket and stared at where previously separated threads were joined together as tightly woven as if they had never split in the first place. "What happened?"  
  
Yuffie laughed. "With all the Heartless around, Aerith figured that it'd be worth it to learn how to cure clothing as well as flesh." Pointing to her companion and making the crazy gesture with the other hand, she added, "She's kinda weird like that, but she's the best white mage we've got."  
  
Aerith backed away from Sora and turned to her comrade, insulted. Yuffie responded to the white mage's glare with a peppy grin before she bounced forward. "So you made it out of there nice and alive I see! Welcome to Trinity!"  
  
Sora grinned. As easy as most of the trial had been, he already knew that he had passed. "Thanks!" Expecting them to say something more, he waited. He needed some sort of assignment, and he needed to get out to find his friends. When they said nothing more, he started again. "So..."  
  
"Hold on! Be patient! We have to wait for Sq–er–Leon to come, you know," Yuffie managed to scold while maintaining her perpetually hyper demeanor, and Sora wondered if she was on a permanent sugar high. "Speaking of which, where is he? He said he was going to pick up the delegates."  
  
Neither Sora nor Aerith missed the irony of that statement, and they exchanged amused smiles. "Yuffie," Aerith reminded her, "Leon had to pick up the king's delegates, I'm sure they'll be here soon." With an apologetic smile, she addressed Sora, "Sorry for making you wait, but we have to take care of our guests."  
  
To say the least, Sora was thoroughly lost. A place like Traverse Town couldn't have a king. Nothing that Sora had seen could possibly pass as a palace, and Trinity seemed to run things in all three districts.  
  
"King? Delegates?" Sora echoed Aerith and wondered what was going on.  
  
"You see," Yuffie explained, picking up from where Aerith had left off, "King Mickey used to be one of the most influential leaders of all the worlds. His kingdom pretty much owned and developed the Gummi technology that lets us travel between worlds. Of course, he was a benevolent leader, and one of the most respected ones. But two years ago, he disappeared, leaving no trace of where he might have gone. Sent the kingdom into an upheaval."  
  
Aerith led them back into the small house that served as Trinity Headquarters. "However, two of the king's most trusted advisers have arrived now. We're hoping that they might know where to find him."  
  
So they were waiting for someone important to arrive. "So you think that he'll help you get rid of the Heartless?"  
  
Yuffie paced around the little brick square, gesturing wildly as she talked, "It can't hurt to have him on our side. He's one of the--"  
  
The sound of a heavy door creaking open on rusted hinges marked Leon's arrival and cut Yuffie off from the rest of her explanation. Chains jangled, and Leon walked in, accompanied by two other people and a dog--if 'people' was indeed the right word to describe those whom Leon escorted. The first 'person' was a duck, short, squat, and with a permanent-looking scowl etched on to his feathery face. With his staff held high, the duck attempted a dignified demeanor--an attempt completely undermined by his waddling walk.  
  
The other was just as peculiar. An anthropomorphic dog, he was much taller and thinner than his companion, though his floppy ears and bulky snout displaced any elegance that stature might have lent him.  
  
A yell that reminded Sora of seagulls calling distracted him from staring at these new curiosities. The duck stomped forward, shaking his cartoonish staff at Sora. The death glare in his eyes might have intimidated Sora if they didn't belong to a duck. Instead it provoked a smirking response from the boy.  
  
"Stop staring!" the duck quack yelled as he raised his staff and started to chant something. Leon stepped forward to interrupt.  
  
"This is not the time." Leon lectured both duck and boy. "These are Donald, Royal Wizard–" he pointed to the unintimidating duck– "And Goofy, Captain of the Royal Knights–" this time he pointed to the dim-looking dogoid.  
  
"They are the delegates of King Mickey of Disney Castle," Aerith patiently explained to Sora. "Please forgive this recruit's behavior. He's just recently arrived on this world, and so everything is still new to him."  
  
Yuffie elbowed Sora. "Apologize," she hissed, "we can't offend the delegates."  
  
"Sorry for being so rude," Sora apologized, even though he didn't recall being impolite. Observing and staring were two completely different things, after all.  
  
"That's better," Yuffie said cheerily, leading Donald and Goofy to the headquarters while Leon approached Sora.  
  
"You've proven that you can defeat the small fries," Leon said, "but can you handle the leaders?" He led him down to the main part of the Third District as Aerith followed Yuffie and the delegates into the house.  
  
The Trinity members who had been milling about the plaza earlier were gone now, and Leon ordered Sora to go forward. He complied, and immediately, Sora. The other possible exits were blocked as well,  
  
Sora heard a sound like old tin rattling and automatically prepared for a fight. The leader descended, detached metal feet falling first, followed by an armored torso, arms, and helmet-clad head, all in a very violet shade. As far as monsters went, the giant tin soldier was not as terrifying as the large shadow he'd fought back on his island. Sora walked forward, ready to fight.  
  
"I'm gonna crumple you like a can!" Sora shouted with bravado at the purple knight Heartless. His battle cry shouted, he rushed forward with his sword at the ready and advanced on the soon-to-be tin can.  
  
He hit a leg, and the vibration from metal hitting metal strained Sora's grip on his weapon. He held on, though, and continued his assault on the leg. It soon detached from the rest of the machine creature and began kicking him.  
  
Unsure of how to respond to this sudden attack, Sora covered his head with both of his hands and rolled away from the angry foot. When he was far enough away, he stood up again, planning his next assault on the disembodied limb, and the rest of the armor suit's body slammed into his head.  
  
The blow disoriented Sora for a second, causing him to wobble a bit before he regained the offensive and slammed his sword back into the torso of the armor, forcing it to retreat towards the fountain. Content that it was far enough back from him, Sora concentrated on exacting his revenge upon the metal leg.  
  
Just a few sweet strokes of his sword and the leg fell to the ground, twitching a little as if it were working up the strength to get up again. Then it clanked down one final time and disappeared while Sora concentrated on ridding himself of the other parts, the other leg first, followed by both of the arms, all while suffering a few more blows to his own head in the process.   
  
The torso was the last to go, and only the fireworks he had seen on the islands compared to the explosion that ensued. Sparks flew off metal as it broke down, and some of them brushed against Sora's cheek, causing little points of pain to flare up on contact and die quickly.  
  
The walls that had contained the battle receded into the ground, and the spectators from above – the Trinity leaders and the delegate s-- descended the stairs. Aerith rushed over, ready with a cure spell to heal the various dents and scratches acquired from the battle. Leon, Yuffie, and the delegates approached more slowly, Yuffie grinning, Leon looking blank, Goofy smiling dopily, and Donald scowling a ducky scowl.  
  
Once Aerith had finished healing Sora, Leon stepped forwards, still wearing a bland expression. "Congratulations."  
  
Yuffie, as bouncy as Leon was bland, jumped in. "You've just been made a member of Trinity. And guess what? Because you want it so much, we're even gonna give you off-world duties."  
  
Coughs and strained laughing sounded from the other members of Trinity as they crowded back into the main district. A few of them stepped closer, getting a look at their newest member. While the chatter amongst them was indistinct at best, Sora could make out enough to feel uncomfortable.  
  
"Hey look! It's just a scrawny kid!"  
  
"Hah, they're giving him off-world duty. Must be that gullible. Poor sucker. Better him than me, though."  
  
"Still, he beat down that construct of Cid's pretty good."  
  
"But how you think he's gonna do against real Heartless leaders?"  
  
"Who knows? No better than the last loser who had his job."  
  
When Sora prepared to step forward and protest against these people, Aerith held him back. "Don't let them bother you. You did well, and you have a reason for going off-world."  
  
Sora shrugged her off. "I'm not bothered, really. I just want to find my friends." Sora waved them off and their assurances, although he still tried to silently convince himself that he wasn't being manipulated into this and that as long as this was the best way to find RIku and Kairi again, he'd do it anyway.   
Out of the blue, he laughed out loud. Shame on them for thinking of going to other worlds as a chore. Hadn't he and his friends wanted to go see them so long ago? Yes, and now their delayed dream was coming true. And not just that, but he had taken down that hunk of metal almost as fast as a storm ripped up a raft. He dared any of the Trinity members making fun of him to say the same.  
  
Everyone looked at him, and Sora grinned a face-splitting grin. "This is an adventure, and I bet that they're just jealous that I get to go and they have to stay behind."  
  
"That's the spirit!" Yuffie said, jumping up and down enthusiastically. "Now let's go get Cid and Brant and get you to your Gummi Ship. You've got other worlds you need to go to."  
  
Yuffie's burst of energy coupled with his own evoked a sudden impatience in Sora. This tiny, cramped world fenced him in, and he needed to be free again. Like his island, this town was a prison, but unlike his island, this looked and felt just as closed in as it was.  
  
Cid and Brant finally came out of the headquarters, Cid managing to scowl and look proud at the same time, and Brant theatrically tipping his hat to Sora in congratulations  
"I heard about your great deed, young lad. A difficult feat and one accomplished with much panache it was." Brant said, offering forth a small bundle. "Some potions and ethers as a reward for your efforts in controlling Cid's creation."  
  
After withering glances from Leon and Cid, Brant quited. "Kid, you did decent. Didn't think you had it in you," Cid admitted at last, "Got the best of my machine, you did."  
  
Sora accepted the bundle from Brant and unraveled it, happy to see the vials of friendly green liquid lined up in a neat row and ambivalent about the bottles of frothing blue liquid. He held one up, investigating the contents by the glow of a streetlight. "What's this for?" he asked.  
  
"That concoction is the ether of legend," Brant said, "Said by thousands of the wisest sages to refresh the energies of the mind in the same manner as potions refresh the body."  
  
"Okay..." He thought he knew what ethers did after hearing that explanation, but he couldn't be sure. They sounded nice to have around, though.  
  
"Don't confuse the kid with fancy words." Cid said. "Kid, they're ethers, and they help with focus. Usually if you don't use magic or fancy attacks, then you don't need them."   
  
So he probably didn't need them now, although who knew? This was a new place, and with everything new that he had learned, magic wasn't impossible, and definitely he could train sometime and learn special attacks. He wrapped the bundle up and put it under his arm. "I'm gonna keep it anyway. Because I'm gonna go out and learn magic sometime. You'll see." He grinned at all of them. "Thanks!"  
  
"You ready, kid? There are a lot of people who need rescuing from the Heartless." Cid strode towards the exit leading to First District, much to Sora's dismay. He had hoped to be done with the mass of people packed shoulder-to-shoulder.  
  
Sora looked at the little bundle tucked under his arm and the sword hanging from his side. Ready? Of course he was. "Ready for anything." He walked to the exit where Cid was waiting and waved to the rest of the Trinity members and the delegates from Disney Castle. "Bye everybody!" he shouted, "See you all when I get back!"  
  
The comfort of the Third District gave way to the congestion of the First District, and Sora found himself walking in the wake left by Cid as the mass of people almost magically parted for him. The trip was mercifully brief in comparison to the much longer trek to the Second District entrance.  
  
They stopped at a massive door, one that Sora didn't know how he and Cid were going to handle opening until the older man simply knocked. "Hey! Open the door! We've got someone for refugee duty!"  
  
Gears and hinges creaked as the door heaved itself open, revealing a spacious dock area. The walls surrounding it were clear, giving Sora a glimpse of the blue and green space beyond. It reminded Sora of the seas back home, wide and open to a bunch of new experiences. But, unlike his familiar home waters, this new sea wasn't lying, and no storm would come to take away these possibilities. Actually, this space was like the sky, with cloudy wisps floating in front of scattered stars that twinkled, some soft and calm, a few frenzied, and one that flickered on and off like a flame in a strong wind.  
  
Cid must have caught Sora gaping. "Kid, we don't have all day. Now stop your gawking and get over here."  
  
Sora pulled his eyes away from the distant view beyond and focused on the old man and the ships directly behind him. "Say gramps, this is just the sky, right?"  
  
"'Just the sky?'" Cid echoed, "Look, kid, this ain't 'just' anything, and interspace ain't no playground. You can get killed." He walked into the port and headed towards the large ship docked closest to them.  
  
"It's still the sky we look at, right?" Sora said, persisting in his curiosity.  
  
"Who cares? Now get on the ship, you've got refugees to pick up. So stop wasting time."  
  
Sora complied, and he followed Cid onto the ramp leading up to the intimidating, white ship. Maybe he'd get to pilot it, sailing it across the sky–no, interspace– like a raft along the ocean and using new worlds as his ports of call. The metal floor beneath him clanked with cold authority, and he shivered at the chance to have this authoritative machine under his control. Always, he had wanted to be the captain of the raft, and yet the raft was nothing compared to this ship. Though it was huge in volume, probably for carrying as many refugees as was possible, the twin engines in the back promised speed, and the row of heavy lasers pointing towards the front promised strength and security.  
  
"Kid! Snap out of it and get on the ship! We don't have time to waste!" Cid yelled, pushing Sora towards the ship; however, he didn't sound nearly as irritated as he had before with Sora's staring into space, and before he passed Sora, he paused to make a comment. "She's a beauty, isn't she? She's got Ga brand weaponry and Flare engines, and even now, I've got some Meteor lasers ready to install." Like the monster Sora'd fought earlier, Cid must have built this ship– the pride in his voice betrayed that.  
  
"Hey, am I going to be piloting this?" Sora asked, hoping that Cid's sudden good mood would make him more open to the request.  
  
Unfortunately it backfired, as Cid's mood suddenly turned. "You? Pilot this thing? Kid, you've got to be joking. It takes years of experience to pilot this thing, and only the best of the best are good enough for this. If I didn't have other things to do here, I'd be the one to pilot her." He led the way to the cockpit, where a tattooed man with a blond mohawk sat, making last minute adjustments to the controls. He muttered something in a language completely foreign to Sora.  
  
"What's he saying?" Sora asked.  
  
"Beats me. That guy's the best we've got, though, so who cares if he talks funny? Says his name's Brother, although we don't got a clue whose brother he is. And he understands what everyone else says, even though he can't speak worth anything."  
  
Brother glowered at Cid as he continued flipping switches in preparation for take off. Cid approached Brother and gave some last minute instructions to the pilot of his creation, and Sora took this opportunity to look around a bit. Unlike the ship's exterior, which spoke of artistry and revolutionary design, the interior was blank. Outside of the small bridge, where Sora and his crew would sit during the journey, the engine room, and a small cabin for the crew members who lived on the ship even while they were off-duty, the rest of the space was nothing but an expansive room with empty, white walls. Nothing except for the rows of lights that illuminated the interior interrupted the cool smoothness of it all. He supposed that this place was where the refugees went when they boarded the ship.  
  
Not seeing anything else worth touring, Sora returned to the bridge, where Cid was just on his way out. "Remember kid, when this thing takes off, wear your seatbelt. She's gonna go really fast, and you're gonna go flying if you aren't wearing one. Also, good luck. You're gonna need it." With that, Cid left the ship as Sora walked onto the bridge.  
  
There was one available seat, this one right next to the pilot. Sora strapped himself in, although he wondered how a ship could go fast enough that someone would need to be strapped in. It was just a boat, one that sailed through the sky–or interspace, though Sora still thought of it as the sky–but still a boat.  
  
Brother yelled at him in a rapid string of words that Sora couldn't even start to decipher. When it was time for some sort of expected response, Sora passed it off with a shrug and an "Uhh... sure..."  
  
Apparently this was enough for Brother, as he turned his permanently scowling face back to the front. His hands moved furiously across the control panel, and the floor beneath Sora began to rattle violently, causing his teeth to chatter from. The ship began to rise, and the supports keeping it in the port dropped. From the windows, Sora saw the glass around them give way, and the ship lurched forward a bit. It took long enough, but the ship was finally free of the port, and the shaking relented a bit. Thinking that it was safe to move about, he prepared to take off his seat belt when the engines kicked in again and this time with a furious wail and tremors that shamed the earlier ones. Wisely, he chose to remain harnessed.  
  
"Blast off!" Brother yelled in a heavy accent that Sora could never have figured out. The ship obeyed the command as it accelerated and pressed Sora so far back in the chair that he expected that he was becoming one with the upholstery. With his eyes literally kept open by the force, Sora saw the space surrounding them turn into a blue-green blur.  
  
"Amazing..." he said, forgetting for just a bit that he was off to see other worlds and marveling in the wonder of a ship that could not only sail through space, but could do so at a speed that he couldn't even start to comprehend.  
  
And even better, he was finally, finally starting on a journey many years overdue.  
  
Whew! Things are finally starting to get moving. Although, as an advanced warning, next chapter is going to be another interlude. Yeah. I know you're all just thrilled about that.  
  
Anyway, thanks to all the people who have reviewed, even though I've been spotty about updating. And special thanks to my editor Koorino Megumi who makes my writing sharper and more legible. I definitely couldn't do so well without her.  
  
Next part should be coming reasonably soon, so hang in there! Thanks everyone!  
  



	10. Second Interlude: A Search Delayed

Second Interlude: A Search Delayed  
  
The boy-warrior had left finally, and Goofy allowed himself the small luxury of a sigh of relief. Not that he was particularly impatient. Leon and Aerith and Yuffie were busy folks, after all, what with their Trinity thing and going out and trying to save as many people and fight as many Heartless as they could. At least with them doing their jobs, he and Donald wouldn't have to fight as much as they might have during their search for the king. So, of course, training and recruiting was an important duty for Trinity just as searching for King Mickey was an important duty for his faithful vassals. Even watching the boy-warrior knocking up that almost-Heartless machine had been an impressive sight.  
  
The issue with this training stuff was that as much as he could understand and even appreciate the agenda of the Trinity organization, the one standing next to him most assuredly did not. In front of the residents of this world, Donald had struggled to keep his cool as the leaders took their time handling the new recruit, and he had done so with startling success, though Goofy suspected that he'd get the brunt of the duck's barely contained frustration as soon as business was taken care of here. He patted the shield strapped to his right arm, reassured by the heaviness of the steel and the king's symbol emblazoned on the front. While the latter served no practical protective function, King Mickey's symbol reminded him of the trust and the confidence that the ruler of the kingdom had placed in him. And now it nagged at him for some reason because he swore he had seen it somewhere else just a few minutes ago. He shrugged, dismissing that as one of the many unimportant thoughts he had that would fly out of his head within a few minutes.  
  
Lightning hit him, and Goofy realized that he'd let his random thoughts get in the way of the moment as they usually did. Of course, Donald had been kind enough to alert him to this. The leaders of this world motioned for them to make their way to headquarters, and both obliged.  
  
At first, Goofy only listened to enough of the conversation to ascertain that it was still idle, as conversation often tended to be as people talked around what was important and instead chose innocuous subjects, in this case a bit of propaganda about Trinity's organization and mission. As fascinating as this forgettable information was, he really focused on the numerous obvious differences between this world and the only one he'd ever seen since he was born. Lines were straighter, for one thing, and all the walls and buildings and stairs were at perfect cookie-cutter 90 degree angles. Home was freeform and curved as the buildings took the shapes that fit them best while this world seemed very stiff and uniform. Even the people, though they were very nice for the most part, seemed bizarrely uniform to him. If he looked hard enough, perhaps he would notice the subtle differences between them, but for now he took note of their clothing and pretended that was enough. Leon was the male, dressed all in black, Yuffie the girl wearing green and shorts, and Aerith the woman in pink.  
  
The house was small for the headquarters of a great organization, although the use of space was efficient. Aerith led them to a small corner and invited them to sit on the bed while Yuffie and Leon were clearing the house of possible eavesdroppers. That's right, Donald must have told them that they wanted to keep their activities as much a secret as they could while they were on another world. Just as they wouldn't muddle in the affairs of others, others should not be given the opportunity to muddle in the affairs of their world.  
  
As Goofy sat on the bed and tried to make himself comfortable while the last of the non-leader Trinity members left, Donald paced the floor in front of the bed, muttering something under his breath.  
  
At last, the Trinity members turned towards them and nodded, and Donald came out of his pacing trance. Awkward silence filled the room for a moment, as everybody waited for someone else to start the conversation. Maybe, Goofy thought, Leon, Yuffie, and Aerith were under the same condition as Donald and him to not muddle in the affairs of others and to share as little information with outsiders as they could manage. He decided to break the silence, trusting that these people, as odd-looking as they might be, were trustworthy.  
  
"Umm...our king has been missing for a while, and just a day ago we got notice to talk to Leon. Said there was something about a key or something."  
  
The three humans glanced at each other, and finally Leon spoke up. "The Keyblade. Of course the king would want to find it."  
  
"What's that supposed to mean?" Donald asked, too quick to take offense. Already Goofy could see the little feathers on his neck standing up, a sure sign that the duck was ready to unleash his fury upon Leon.  
  
However, Aerith managed to step in before anything disastrous could come from the potential misunderstanding. "The worlds are locked in a spiral of destruction. Heartless take over a world and spawn more Heartless in its destruction, who spread to other worlds. The Keyblade is the only thing that can stop the spiral before everything is destroyed."  
  
"Gawrsh," Goofy said, resorting to his favorite word, "Sounds important. Where can we find it?"  
  
The three of them looked at each other again in what Goofy thought was uncertainty. Finally Yuffie shuffled forward nervously, looking like an airsick person about to enter a Gummi ship, pale and a little frightened. "You see.... the Keyblade isn't what saves the worlds. It's up to the person who uses it, the Keyblade Master, to decide what happens. The Keyblade can also be a powerful instrument of destruction."  
  
"You don't have to worry about that," Donald said. "The king would only use it for a good purpose."  
  
There was total silence before Aerith spoke up. "Of course we know that your king would only use the Keyblade for a good purpose. The problem is that we have no control over who the Keyblade goes to. You see..."  
  
Leon put his hand on his temple and shook his head. "Don't mince words with them. The Keyblade chooses its master, and it already chose somebody else. Believe me, if it were up to us, your king would have it."  
  
Tension reigned supreme in the house for a few minutes. Though his companion was quiet, Goofy could tell that Donald was absolutely livid and nearly ready to burn the headquarters down. The Trinity members avoided looking at either of them, and even Goofy wanted to talk of something else beside the Keyblade. Although he did have to ask one more thing.  
  
"What happened to this Keyblade Master?"  
  
"He showed up at this town two years ago, Keyblade in hand, and slaughtered hundreds of Heartless with about as much effort as a child cutting up imaginary enemies. We tried to get him on our side, but he left before we could talk to him. The spiral of destruction accelerated soon afterward. While we don't have proof of what he did or whether he's still alive, we do believe that he and his key turned the tide of this war in the wrong direction," Aerith explained, trying to keep herself composed.  
  
What else could Goofy say? "Gawrsh... that's terrible."  
  
Donald, looking as crestfallen as Goofy felt, nodded in agreement instead of going into his impending outburst. "We're doomed then." He resumed his pacing, polishing the wood floors with his webbed feet.  
  
Yuffie, ever optimistic, started up again, "Not yet. Have you ever heard of a man named Ansem?"  
  
"An-sem?" The name sounded familiar to Goofy, although he couldn't quite remember where he knew it from. An-sem was probably one of King Mickey's friends. After all, the king did have a reputation for knowing a lot of strange people. And An-sem certainly had a strange name, so it made sense that he was strange.  
  
"Yes, Ansem. He was the ruler of our home world before Heartless overran it. He was a great scholar who did research on the Heartless and the nature of the worlds and put his findings in a detailed report. Unfortunately, it's been scattered across the worlds. If we could find it–"  
  
"Then we could find another way to save the worlds!" Donald completed Aerith's last sentence, and Goofy admired his companion's penchant for quick thinking. Of course. The king had always said that knowledge was power, and having that report would help them. It might even save them all.  
  
"Exactly." Leon said, seeming ready to end the conversation. "So we should concentrate on looking for the report." He too began pacing the floor, although his strides resembled a soldier's march while Donald's pacing was still his usual angry waddle.  
  
At the last part of Leon's assessment of the situation, Donald stopped his pacing and the foul temper that he'd kept admirably in check since the beginning of the conversation finally began to emerge. "No!! We have to find the king first! Then we'll find your report." He crossed his feathered arms across his chest and glared at the three humans.  
  
Leon's reaction to this outburst was a stoic look at the duck and a bored, "Fine. Whatever. Search for your king, but what can he do without the Keyblade or the report?"  
  
"We can figure that out!" Donald stormed out of the house with his trademark waddling walk, hopefully to calm down a bit before they figured out their next course of action. For his part, Goofy began apologizing profusely for Donald. Although the duck was much smarter than he could ever be, Goofy understood that his job accompanying Donald on diplomatic missions was to smooth over the misunderstandings that the well-intentioned but easily-irritated wizard often initiated.  
  
Aerith nodded as if she understood, although Yuffie remained silent and Leon just glowered. "We understand your commitment to finding your king, and we don't want to undermine that at all. However, if you're going to be searching many worlds, perhaps finding the missing pages of the reports doesn't have to interfere."  
  
Now that someone had mentioned the idea of searching for the king and the report at the same time, Goofy had no clue why one would interfere with the other. "Gawrsh. That sounds pretty reasonable. If we're going on a hunt for the king, why shouldn't we find that report for you guys too? I'll go talk to Donald for you if you'd like."  
  
Continuing her role as spokesperson for the group, Aerith bowed graciously. "Thank you. You wouldn't believe how much this means to us, having the help of King Mickey's most trusted advisers."  
  
Goofy supposed that he really wouldn't believe it and waved good-bye to the Trinity Members before he started trying to find Donald. It didn't take long, however, as Goofy saw Donald as he peered into the lower area of Third District, the duck skulking by and probably glaring at the fountain nestled in the corner of the stairwell.  
  
Still in a foul mood, Donald hissed as Goofy approached. "You know, Donald..." Goofy started hesitantly, half-expecting to get cursed at. When Donald merely turned away and marched off towards the exit to First District, Goofy sighed with a mixture of relief and frustration. His friend was in one of those moods again, and all Goofy could do about it was press on as if he hadn't noticed anything out of the ordinary. "Donald... I was talking to Aerith and them, and what they want seems pretty reasonable. Why can't we look for King Mickey and the report at the same time?"  
  
Donald continued his pacing, this time up the staircase behind the fountain he'd been glaring at earlier, and Goofy continued talking. "He pretty much told us to trust these guys, right? If they help us out, then it's fair that we help them in return, right? It's the law of recipes."  
  
"Reciprocality!" The duck finally shouted. Goofy knew that it was... that word... but like 'muddling',=,' he liked the sound of 'recipes' better, and it was easier to pronounce than that other word. It was proof also that Donald was listening to him even if he ignored the message.  
  
"Right. That word. So, if it doesn't interrupt our search, why not help them out? The king would have wanted us to do it."  
  
After a long pause, Donald finally answered his pleas with a steely quack. "We'll see. We still have business to do here first."  
  
Business? Oh right. Donald's nephews still needed to be sent back to the Disney Kingdom, and judging from the number of refugees packed into the First District, they were going to have to spend awhile searching. "Right, your nephews. Where to look?" Goofy's first thought was to go back to Leon and the rest and just ask, but as he headed up to the headquarters, Donald tugged on his sleeve.  
  
"No!" The duck spat. "We can't go back there!"  
  
Goofy smiled good-naturedly, although his patience was wearing thin. "Donald... they'd probably know where to find them."  
  
"Fine. Then you talk to them! I'm not going back." Donald stormed down an alleyway leading to a red door, and while Goofy noticed one of the world's residents heading into a head-on collision with Donald, neither of those two did. Goofy prepared to shout out a warning when they bumped into each other and fell to the ground.  
  
The high-pitched shriek and the slightly lower-pitched quack did no favors for Goofy's eardrums. He was about to take refuge in Trinity Headquarters when he realized that, in a situation like this, Donald's infamous temper would require that someone supervise the duck in case something got out of hand.  
  
And sure enough, Donald began a magical rampage on the poor soul he had bumped into, and Goofy nearly tripped over his feet trying to restrain Donald before he could cause any harm only to be rewarded by a bolt of lightning striking him straight on the noggin.  
  
"You want to mess with me, ducky?" The resident, a pale female youth, said, using her slightly taller frame to intimidate Donald. "Huh? You want to mess with me?" Apparently, she tore her glare away from Donald long enough to see who she had really hit. "Get out of here. You don't need to get involved."  
  
Goofy elbowed his way between the girl and Donald, reasonably afraid that they were about to start a fight. "Look, we're don't want any trouble, miss..."  
  
"Lana." The girl grumbled her name.  
  
"Miss Lana. We're just looking for some people."  
  
Lana pulled her jacket around her and walked off in a huff. "I'm sorry, but I'm really busy. Maybe you should go ask Sir Leon or Lady Aerith or Yuffie."  
  
With his longer stride, he caught up to her quickly. "Sorry, Miss Lana, but Donald here... he's not on the best terms with them right now, and we're looking for his nephews."  
  
"Try the Item Shop. They've got annoying ducks there too." Lana waved them off and continued into the Trinity Headquarters. As she opened the door, Pluto ran out and toppled her over before bounding over to Donald and Goofy. Goofy gave a dopily apologetic look to Lana while patting Pluto on the head.  
  
"Hey boy," Goofy addressed Pluto, "Do you know where Donald's nephews are?"  
  
Pluto ran clumsily on big paws towards the exit to First District and started scratching at the door and barking.  
  
Goofy chuckled. "I guess so." He pushed the door open, relieved that at least someone in this place could be helpful.

To be Continued

**Author's Notes:** Holy chocolate bovines, I'm finally done with all the Traverse Town stuff. For now. So off to the next world and to figure out how Sora is going to get by without that little thing... what's it called? Oh yes, the Keyblade.  
  
A great big thanks to my beta-reader Koorino Megumi, who takes time from her busy life to make sure that this thing turns out legible, and an even bigger thanks to all the reviewers who are still following this silly little story. To Ginger who brought up the tone thing, yes, it will get darker. Eventually. However, considering that the next world on the itinerary is Wonderland, I'm going to have fun with that cracked-up place. Fun, of course, sometimes meaning sadistic.

Toodles.


	11. An Unbirthday Tea

Part Nine: An Unbirthday Tea

Sora got off the ship feeling a bit disoriented, a feeling multiplied by his current slow fall through a tunnel of clocks of all the strange things. Upon the arrival to this new world, Brother and the rest of the crew had unceremoniously dumped him at the entrance of the world, and one of them, not Brother, had said in a broken form of Sora's language that they would pick up the refugees by his landing spot.

The tumble was long enough for Sora to wonder how he and the refugees would ever get back up and then ponder a solution or two before he hit the tiles floor with a hard thud. He groaned as he got to his feet and hardly walked two steps from his landing spot when he found himself floating back up again.

Hey! Hey! Let me down!" Sora protested this sudden failure of gravity, and gravity rewarded him by dumping Sora, backside first, to the floor. He moved from that spot immediately and squinted at it, trying to see if anything distinguished the anti-gravity point from the rest of the floor. The translucent blades of air almost escaped detection, but when Sora focused on them, he could see the circle they formed, faint but perfectly clear. If he ever needed to leave the world, and when the others needed to leave the world, he could just use this spot.

That solved that first dilemma, but Sora had a feeling that was only the easy part. For a moment, he stood still as he plotted what he would need to do. Find the residents of this world for one, and search for Riku and Kairi. They had been near him when their world disappeared, so it made sense that they would be on a world close to the one he landed on. What would they think of this Sora, one who fought and saved people. Kairi would think it neat, while Riku would pretend to be unimpressed, but inside, he'd think it was pretty cool as well.

Sora allowed himself the indulgence of thinking about his reunion with his friends when a white rabbit, drawing a watch from its waistcoat pocket rushed by him in a panic.

"Oh dear, oh dear, I shall be too late!" the white rabbit said as it rushed past Sora. Out of curiosity as much as duty, Sora followed, wondering what business a white rabbit wearing a waistcoat and carrying a pocket watch could have that needed such urgent attention. Vaguely it occurred to Sora that the rabbit could lead him to the residents of this world, and as an afterthought he wondered if it were somehow related to the two talking, clothes-wearing animals that he'd met in Traverse Town.

A series of doors each smaller than the last, opened for the white rabbit and it rushed past the last threshold into whatever area lie beyond. Sora followed, although the size of the last door forced him to scrunch through on his hands and knees. The room opened up into a small, though comfortably-sized room, and the white rabbit was nowhere to be found. Sora looked around for an exit, and while he found another door leading out of the room, it puzzled him further, for the door was slightly more than a foot high.

"How'd he get so small" he idly wondered. Neither on his world nor in Traverse Town had anyone actually shrunk, and even if this world were home to white rabbits with social engagements or business meetings or whatever else someone could be late for, the laws of physics were required to stay the same. Living things didn't just shrink. That was just the way things were: Sora always beat Riku in racing, Kairi always found hi-potions in the strangest places, and living things never closed in on themselves like a telescope.

The response to his question, from the tiny door itself shattered that Sora's illusion of an orderly world. "No, you're just too big. Now if you'll excuse me..." The doorknob trailed off as it yawned and blinked its eyelids droopily.

"Wait... you mean I can get smaller?" Sora asked the doorknob while jostling it a bit. "How?"

If Sora had not been sensible enough to know otherwise, he would have sworn that the doorknob was glaring at him. "Try the bottle. On the table." It gestured behind Sora, and when he turned around to see the table that the doorknob was indicating, he almost jumped back in surprise to find that a table had popped out of the floor where Sora had known no table had been just a moment before. And sure enough, two bottles lay on the table top, each with a different colored label. That was the only thing distinguishing them, unfortunately.

He examined both of the bottles, hoping to find something on the label that would help explain which one he should drink and what it would do. The only words printed on the labels were 'Drink Me.' So Sora did. He tried the orange bottle first, taking a tiny sip and hoping that the contents weren't poisonous. They weren't, although the curious feeling of something inside him fizzing outward that followed made him wonder. Quickly the small and cozy room became awfully cramped, and soon he was scrunched up in the corner, and the previously normal-sized furniture looked like it belonged in Kairi's old doll house.

Fighting back the urge to make a corny joke to himself about growth spurts, Sora maneuvered the hand closest to the tiny table to take the blue bottle. If the orange one had made him grow, then chances were that the blue one would make him shrink. It seemed perfectly logical to Sora, even within the warped laws of this world. One sip of the blue liquid and Sora felt a fizzing inward sensation, similar but completely opposite to what he had felt before.

He stopped shrinking at his usual size, and he considered taking another sip in order to get down to the appropriate height to go through the door, when he considered that the door, being in its sleepy, irritable mood, much like he was when his mom tried to wake him for school, would probably not open for him. So, if he were to drink and go down to floor level, he needed another way out.

He examined the room for any little cracks and crevices that someone less than a foot high might be able to exploit. There were none. From under a bed in the corner, however, a draft hit his ankles, signifying a possible exit, and a push from Sora to put the bed back into the wall– another feat of weird physics that Sora didn't want to wrap his brain around trying to explain– revealed an open hole into the wall.

Satisfied that he wouldn't be trapped in this room, Sora took another swig of the blue bottle drink and promptly he shrank to no more than three-inches high, small enough to go through the little hole in the wall. He felt like a mouse, and suddenly he hoped that there wasn't anything large around waiting to prey on him. Just in case, he held his sword ready.

Sora had the chance to take maybe two steps towards his goal, when the first wave of Heartless attacked. In addition to the typical shadows that were there, three bell shaped creatures, dressed in red surrounded Sora as well, floating and bobbing in the air.

The shadows were disposed of quickly enough, but the red bells dodged his attacks, often rising above his reach. He half considered, leaving them be and continuing on, when the first of the new type of Heartless stilled and appeared to be concentrating. From the top of it's head, a small fire formed. Sora took advantage of this stillness and struck. Two meager blows and the Red Bell Heartless disappeared in a puff of dark smoke. He grinned and patted this hilt of his sword fondly.

A barrage of heat from behind reminded Sora that this battle wasn't done yet. He turned to confront the other two creatures and began the futile battle dance. Sora pushed forward with his sword while the Heartless rose and dipped and swayed from side to side. Some lucky strikes of Sora's landed on one of the Heartless, causing it to dissipate and leaving Sora with one more left.

The last fire caster disappeared from Sora's line of sight, and while Sora spun around searching for it, a rapid succession of fireballs splashed against his face. Smoke from the exploding flames blinded Sora, but still he lunged forward, determined to exterminate this last threat before it exterminated him. His actions were risky but well-rewarded when the sword caught against the underside of the bell and clumsily tore it in half.

Sora assessed his condition after the skirmish drew to the end. For all that he'd been burned, he didn't feel nearly as bad as he had expected. The spots where the fireballs had hit felt like a bad sunburn, and when he rubbed his hands on his face to clear his vision, his palms were dirtied by the soot, but he felt nothing that would indicate a severe injury or permanent deformity.

The Heartless had infiltrated the world. That made his job of navigating through this strange place a little more challenging, but it told him absolutely nothing about the amount of time he had to get himself and the hearted residents of this world onto the Gummi ship and out of danger. On one hand, Sora remembered someone remarking that Traverse Town was still holding out even after a few years of Heartless attacks, but his own world had disappeared just after the first waves of Shadows had invaded. However, he doubted that he had years to complete his current mission, so Sora wiped the rest of the soot from his face and continued on his way.

A few minor incidents later, Sora reached the goal of the hole in the wall, and to commemorate this accomplishment, he dipped into the stash of potions that Brant had given to him, and chugged one down. Feeling replenished, Sora wiped his mouth and continued into the world beyond the room.

The bizarre forest seemed familiar to Sora in its form although something about the way he saw it made it more frightening and exiting. The trees, which reached higher than the ones Sora climbed back on his islands, had trunks and branches that were entirely green, and the canopies of the trees, the parts that were supposed to be green, were in every bright color other than green. Upon puzzling over the matter a bit further, Sora realized that the trees here looked like flowers and he suddenly remembered that he was only about three-inches tall, and therefore the flowers actually looked like trees from his perspective.

Had he been back on any world other than this one, and the had threat of destruction and Heartless not loomed over him, Sora would have spent some time playing in these surroundings, despite being sixteen and too old for children's games. Instead, he spent a quiet moment appreciating the giant flowers and promised himself that he'd climb around the first legitimate chance he got.

For the moment, Sora decided to walk around some more. He had a mission, and he kept reminding himself of that every time the temptation to climb a mushroom or flower struck. When the flower forest closed in on him, Sora finally gave in and hopped from mushroom, to mushroom and then on top of a lotus leaf. From there, he jumped to the a stalk of a tall flower and shimmied up another foot. Just below the ball-shaped cluster of blossoms blowing a cloying sweet scent in his face, Sora clung to the stem with one hand and used the other one to shade his eyes and take a look around.

Three paths wound their way through the garden, although Sora couldn't see their exits. At least one of them would lead to people, of that Sora was sure. "Which one should I take?" He idly wondered out loud.

"Depends on where you want to go." A slightly mad voice answered him.

Sora swung around on the stem looking for the source of the voice. The flower dipped and bobbed, until Sora was clinging to dear life to the gently bending stem. Right below him, a toothy, crescent-moon grin jeered in the shadows. When the rest of the face faded into sight, Sora was a bit puzzled although not at all surprised to discover that it belonged to a purple-striped cat.

"I just need to find people. Other than that, it doesn't really matter."

The cat disappeared and reappeared right above Sora. "Then it doesn't matter which one you take." The cat faded out of Sora's line of sight, slowly this time, its body unraveling like tightly wound ribbons while its head disappeared one feature at a time, leaving that spooky grin for last.

Sora glowered a bit at the cat's evasion of his question and he slid down the stem of the flower and followed his path of leaves and mushrooms back to the forest floor. He stared around at the various paths and prepared to randomly choose one path. Before he could start walking, though, the odd feline reappeared.

"If you really want to know, the White Rabbit, he went that-a-way." It informed Sora, standing on its head and pointing his left paw towards the right.

"Okay. Thanks." Sora nodded and walked off in the direction indicated. A few steps later, he stopped. "Hey!" he called out to the looming garden around him, "What kind of cat are you anyway?"

Materializing with lazy ease, the cat appeared in front of Sora. "Why," he paused here with an arrogant ease, "I'm a Cheshire Cat of course. What other kind is there?"

How could he know? Cats were cats except when they grinned like lunatics and vanished like mirages. Sora started thinking on his feet. "There are Caterpillars, Meerkats, Catapults, Cats-o'-nine-tails, Ducats and... lots of cats really."

The Cheshire Cat strutted around Sora's legs, lazily waving its tail. When it spoke, it sounded snobby, as if Sora had just compared him to creatures of a lower class. "I am not a pillared cat, nor a paulted cat, nor a nine-tailed cat. And while some could call me a do-cat, I am certainly not just a mere cat."

The cat vanished for a final time, letting each part of him disappear slowly from the tail on up, leaving the grin for last. "One more thing," the catless grin said, "if you're thirsty, do stop by the tea party."

Left in peace, Sora went in the direction indicated by the Cheshire Cat. If the animals of this world were like this, the actual people inhabiting this world must be certifiably insane. What could he do about it? He had to save them from the Heartless, who seemed to be in the early stages of invading this world.

Continuing down the path and taking care of the stray Heartless nuisances that showed up, Sora eventually made his way to a little house with a picturesque garden. Two figures dressed in gentlemen's garb sat at a long table, pouring tea and passing around biscuits. The Cheshire cat had mentioned a tea party, and, after completing his long journey and then dealing with the laws of physics gone wild, Sora felt a little peckish.

"Hey." Sora nodded to the gentlemen, who nodded back with acknowledgment. The man with a giant purple hat that obscured his face offered Sora a seat and immediately poured him a cup of tea. The other gentleman, a black hare with a toupee set between his ears, offered a biscuit. Neither of them spoke.

"Umm... thank you." Sora said, feeling awkward as he accepted the refreshments from his silent hosts. Together they ate and drank in silent dignity. The whole setting felt uneasy, enough so that Sora almost left after his first cup of tea.

The man with the hat –Sora decided to call him Hatter– took out a card and scribbled something down with a glove-covered hand. Solemnly, he bowed and passed the note to Sora. "A very merry unbirthday to you," it said.

"Thanks." Sora mumbled, impressed at Hatter's remembering of his unbirthday. Hatter leaned forward expectantly. "Is- is it your birthday too?" Sora asked the others at the table. The black hare– whom Sora decided to simply call Hare– just stared at Sora in a spooky-blank way. The Hatter nodded frantically. "A very merry unbirthday to you then." he said to Hatter, "And you too, if it's your unbirthday. If not, then happy birthday." he added to Hare.

Even though Sora couldn't see Hatter's face, he had the sense that the little fellow was beaming as Sora 'remembered' his unbirthday. Hare just looked down, appearing sad despite the blank expression. The unbirthday greetings led into another cup of tea and another helping of biscuits, and Sora accepted. Silence reigned at the head of the table and provoked Sora's misgivings to rise to the surface. A chill breeze blew through the garden in warning, and not able to take it anymore, Sora got up from his chair in a start, spilling his mostly-full cup of tea in the process.

His fellow celebrants jumped back at that, skittering around madly and as his senses suddenly grew alert after being dulled from his bizarre surroundings. Hatter's hat flew off, revealing a black Shadow's face and antennae. Hare, too, was a Heartless, though he must have been a rabbit previously. When Sora unsheathed his sword, and prepared to preemptively defend himself from them, neither Heartless moved to attack. Quite the contrary, Hatter retrieved his hat and both ducked under the table, chattering nervously with each other.

Why weren't they fighting? Sora asked himself while debating whether he should leave them be or pursue them. After their generous tea party, Sora hesitated to off his hosts as that action was not an appropriate way to express his gratitude.

"I'm sorry!' He called to the little guys, still hiding under the table. "I thought you were- I mean, I guess that I assumed that you would steal my heart or something. I'm not going to hurt you!"

The tablecloth rustled a little, which Sora interpreted as an encouraging sign. "Thank you for the tea." he continued in a conversational tone. "It was very good."

The two friendly Heartless re-emerged looking proud of themselves at their hospitality. Hatter stepped forward and handed Sora a medicine vial of blue-green liquid; the same color as Riku's eyes, he mused. Hare followed closely behind, his gift a small bag of blue and gold pebbles and a box of unidentifiable black goo. In unison, they bowed to Sora and fled towards the house.

Thinking to rest up a bit at the empty table before moving on, Sora plopped down in the most comfortable looking chair at the table. A cake laid itself in front of him, and spitting in the face of his better instincts, he took a knife and cut into it.

The cake promptly exploded, knocking back all the chairs around the table and sending Sora tumbling into a hedge. In the back of his mind, he heard the door to the house open, but a near-army of Heartless in the foreground quickly demanded his full attention.

Several Solider Heartless made up the forefront of the assault, followed by Fire Mage Heartless in the middle ranks. At the rear, an unknown pot-bellied Heartless dressed in a purple and blue outfit that threatened to burst waddled it's way forward.

The first wave of Soldiers leaped towards Sora, who had already drawn his sword and was ready to counter their attacks with his own. Though the crowd made it difficult for Sora to fight with the range of motion he usually preferred, it also made hitting his targets much easier. He mowed down several Soldiers and even a few of the more agile Red Bells before they reciprocated with attacks of their own.

In a distant reality, Sora knew he was outnumbered and that he was getting hit several times in succession. He knew it, but he couldn't feel it. In the face of this frenzied battle, Sora had no choice but to shut out the outside world and concentrate on eliminating the Heartless.

Still, all his effort wasn't enough as another wave of Heartless pushed him back towards the hedges. The pot-bellied Heartless that he'd ignored earlier because it moved so slowly was now within both Sora's and its attacking range, and even while the smaller Heartless continued pummeling Sora and Sora continued pummeling the smaller Heartless, Pot Belly lunged forward and shoved Sora against the hedges with his big stomach. Trapped between two seemingly immovable objects, Sora couldn't maneuver his sword in such a small area, leaving him defenseless. Two big fist pounded into the sides of his head, jolting his head about and almost – Sora swore– causing his brain to rattle in his skull.

Sora grimaced at his situation: beaten up by the Heartless equivalent of a big dumb bully. What would his friends think if they could see this. They'd laugh at him, or worse, they'd feel sorry for him. He dropped his sword for a moment and pushed against the large Heartless' gut with both hands. It wouldn't budge.

A sword punctured the Pot Belly, and the very point of the tip threatened to slice into Sora before the sword's wielder withdrew it and the Pot Belly dissolved into sparkling shards that scattered through the air. Sora slumped to the ground, his eyes half closed and clouded with red and his hands reaching for his sword.

"Don't." Sora's rescuer commanded him. "Leave them to me. In that condition, you'd just get in the way."

Glad to not have to fight for the moment, Sora nodded and let his head droop down. He didn't exactly see the sparks of power emanating from his rescuer, as much as he saw flashes of light against his eyelids and felt bolts of lightning making the hair on his arms stand up almost as much as the spiky hair on his head. A battle cry rang out, startling Sora enough for him to open his eyes a bit and observe the person who had saved them dashing in every direction and spearing Heartless after Heartless on his big sword. The chaos continued for almost a minute as the crowds of Heartless fell, and only when the garden was deserted of all beings except for himself and Sora, did the berserk warrior finally stop and take his breath.

"Are you okay?" the warrior asked, and in the calm after the storm, Sora had his first blurry look at the person who had rescued him. His blond hair was bigger than Sora's and his sword, which he carried with one hand now that he wasn't using it was at least as long as Sora was tall. No wonder it had almost stabbed Sora when he took out the pot-bellied creature.

Sora placed a hand on his head and looked down at the grass to steady himself. "I'm fine," he said, although his head was still felt a little light from all those punches he suffered. He blinked a bit, noticing a blur of purple on the blur of green that was the grass. When Sora's vision cleared, he realized that it was a hat. Sadness, regret, and a touch of outrage washed over him as he realized what had most likely happened.

"You killed them, didn't you?"

* * *

Authors Notes: OMG an update. Meh. No excuses or anything. I have one more part finished that I can get posted and then I don't know whether I'm continuing or whether this is going to be put on hold for Life, other projects, or FFXI. However, I seem to be getting more into writing these days, which is a good thing, and when my boyfriend comes up, oh yes, there will be much Kingdom Hearts pwnage going on.

Please note that this story was planned before CoM and all of the known information about Kingdom Hearts 2 came out, therefore this story will be inaccurate with anything past the original KH storyline. Forgive me.

Thank you all for your patience.


	12. Painted Roses

Part Ten: Painted Roses

The spiky-haired warrior looked positively apathetic at Sora's accusation. He shrugged. "I saved your life. That's what matters." Clad in a burgundy cape with a collar that obscured the lower half of his face and sporting a fearsome metal claw on his left hand, the man was intimidating enough, but it was the eerily glowing blue eyes and the ease with which he took down a platoon of Heartless that really put Sora on his guard.

Sora struggled to his feet, gasping at the ache in his head as he tried to focus. A wasted potion allowed him to stand without having to hear the rhythm of pain pounding at his temples; a second one washed away the rest of the injuries inhibiting him. "Thanks." Sora said, glum but aware that the stranger had saved his life even if it had been at the expense of a couple of Heartless.

They hadn't just been Heartless. Heartless attacked without mercy, stole hearts, destroyed worlds. Hatter and Hare had served tea and given presents. Even though neither of them had spoken, they had been able to understand human language, and Hatter had even written. Something akin to guilt welled up within him and Sora shoved it down furiously.

"They were Heartless. All of them." The warrior interrupted Sora's thoughts. "Killing them was mercy, for them as well as you. And if you want to survive outside of the safe worlds, you're going to have to get over this." This lecture, accompanied by a steely, dispassionate glance was all the man said before he turned heel and left the garden.

Sora almost let him go. Not a friend, he warned himself, but not a foe either, and after so many battles fighting alone, having someone to fight beside would make his –adventure? task?– situation easier. "Wait up!" Sora ran with newly renewed strength until he caught up with the man.

"Why should I wait for a kid like you?" The question was asked with the same indifference that accompanied all his previous actions, but still Sora sensed that he expected to answer. The man slowed his pace though and allowed Sora to catch up.

"I'm tougher than I look." the 'kid' bragged. Sora brought up his sword to show the warrior. "I've taken out tons of Heartless."

An amused 'hmmph' was the response to that statement. Otherwise the man just kept walking on.

Sora nearly jogged to keep up with the long strides of his companion. "Hey. I'm Sora," he said, futilely trying to keep up the conversation. "What's your–"

"It's Cloud." The man said, not waiting for Sora to answer. "And I prefer silence when traveling."

Ignoring the all too obvious hint, Sora continued speaking. "Do you know where everyone else is? We have to get them off this world?"

Cloud shrugged, not breaking his pace at all nor deigning to answer Sora's question. His purposeful strides reassured Sora and caused the boy to follow in Cloud's direction, encouraged to make conversation or otherwise.

Not that he wanted to make conversation with such a surly person, especially one who had just killed the two sanest beings he'd met since he landed on this topsy-turvy world, but these awkward, walking silences made him uncomfortable– reminded him of the occasional horrible times when Riku or Kairi had been genuinely mad at him. Sora himself had never been one to give the silent treatment, but his friends had been experts, almost as much as this enigmatic man.

Unfriendly as his new companion might be, Sora couldn't deny how much safer he felt around this man, a feeling proven by the numerous Heartless encounters on the road. Where Sora alone might have struggled to hold his own and spent his supply of restorative items, Cloud handled whole groups of Heartless easily, with Sora only having to back him up occasionally. So when they finally reached a wooden sky scraper that Sora realized later was a dried out tree trunk, he was barely injured even after fighting several packs of Heartless.

"This is where I'm going." Cloud said at last, pointing to some tall grass at the forest's edge. Someone had parted some of the blades, forming an arched path to the next destination.

"Than-" Sora started as Cloud turned away and disappeared into the grass. The "Thank you" dropped off abruptly as Sora changed his call. "Wait up!" Too late. Cloud had already walked out of hearing distance or chose to ignore Sora. Regardless of the situation, he followed the path Cloud took more so out of curiosity than any desire to talk to the warrior again.

Alone, Sora tensed at any rustling of leaves or grass, understanding the need for extra caution, especially when his line of sight extended an couple of inches on either side and a few inches forward. No Heartless ambushed him yet when the grass tunnel widened into a path crossing a neatly trimmed lawn and surrounded by a peculiar garden.

_No wonder the Heartless stayed away from this place,_ Sora observed as he took in the unusually shaped hedges and trees. With everything trimmed in the shape of a heart, they most likely felt intimidated or mocked by the presence of this place, if they had anything resembling feelings. Heartless might not like this place, but Sora did. At least he had found the most likely place for civilization to exist on this world and all he had to do now was convince them that their world was in danger and abandon it for another, safer world.

Gardeners tended the roses, and Sora approached them, hoping to get a better idea of his situation before he requested an audience with the leader of the world and explained to him or her the danger of staying on a Heartless-infested world.

"Umm..." he poked the gardener-in-charge, who was directing the work around him with sharp instructions and imperious gestures. He also appeared to be as flat as a playing card, an impression furthered by the intricate designs on the back of his uniform. It required a few more pokes to secure the head-gardener's attention, and when he finally whipped around his body to confront Sora, the human boy realized that instead of merely resembling a playing cart, the man was really a playing card, albeit with human limbs and a head attached to it. His designation was Ace of Spades, appropriate for a gardener.

"What!" Ace of Spades said, reminding Sora of a crotchety old man. "Oh, you must be the part-timer," he concluded. With an authority acquired only after years of working in a position of authority, he summoned over another card-gardener, this one designated as an eight. "We have an extra worker. Get him some paint and a brush. The more workers we have on this project the better off we are." He shooed Sora and the other worker from his sight.

"Paint?" Sora asked.

Eight of Spades sighed. "Guess they don't do much 'splainin' down at castle. Not that I blame 'em 'course. 'Er Majesty gets sure mad when things ain't just so and all." Sora nodded and encouraged the gardener to go on, even though he wasn't sure if he understood the man through his thick lower-class accent. "''Er Majesty, she gots a love o' roses and mades us a demand that we get 'er some right quick."

"So why the paint?"

"Right particular about havin' things just so, 'Er Majesty is. Roses gotta be red, else they jus' won't do. Acey o'er there, screwed up royally and ordered white roses instead. So now, we gotta paint the roses or risk losing our heads. I might not use it for much, I s'pose, but I'm right fond of my head stayin' on me shoulders, thank you very much. So get paintin'."

Sora stood staring at the brush and can of red paint that he suddenly found himself holding until Eight of Spades's scream galvanized him to start working. Sora walked over to the nearest white flowered bush and set the paint bucket down, all the while wondering exactly whether one could actually paint roses with any sort of success. With a dip of the brush into the can of bleeding-red paint, Sora proceeded like he might when painting a house or a fence. The roses did not take the color well, which caused the majority of the paint to drip onto the ground in a crimson puddle.

"No! No! No! No dripping!" Ace of Spades yelled, rushing over to Sora and hitting the youth over his head with his shovel. "Like this..." The card prepared to demonstrate but the sound of trumpets playing caused a scramble in him and the rest of the gardeners as they stopped painting, tried to hide evidence of their activities and rushed over to line the path.

Since he had no clue as to what was going on, Sora stopped painting, but hung back, watching the incoming procession from a reasonable distance. The white rabbit Sora had first seen when entering the world led the parade, blowing a bugle and announcing the arrival of "Her Majesty, the Queen of Hearts."

The ugliest woman Sora had ever seen, carried on a litter borne by eight heart-suited cards, followed the rabbit, and, judging from her expression, she was livid. The spades cowered before the queen as she glared down at them, scrutinizing them and the gardens for fault, not that she had to look very hard.

"What is this!" She bellowed at the cards, obviously displeased at the white roses and red paint.

Ace of Spades reluctantly stepped forward to explain. "You see, your majesty...We uh... I mean... I... they..." he whipped his head around, looking for something or someone to get himself out of what he perceived to be imminent danger. His eyes locked on Sora. "It was him!" he let out at last.

Belatedly, Sora realized that he still held the bucket of paint and a brush. He quickly dropped them, remembering that one of the cards had said something about losing his head if the queen were displeased, and like that card, he did like having his head attached to his body. It was too late for actions though, as she had not only seen him with the paint, but his shoes were splattered with the horrid substance.

Why was he worried? If his life were in danger, he could take her and the lance-carrying bodyguards. What was a furious, lazy, out-of-shape queen compared to mobs of Heartless, who were all competent and serious fighters? Nothing. Nothing at all. He strode forward, and commanded that two of the groveling cards parted for him.

"I was painting the roses, your majesty." Sora challenged her, "If you weren't so harsh, they– I mean– I wouldn't have to go through such drastic measures." Chin up and shoulders back, he glared up at the queen, who immediately picked up on the challenge Sora offered.

She glared back. "So you, you would dare defy me? Off with your–"

Oops. Sora realized that beyond needing to prevent his execution, he needed to convince this imposing presence that her world was in danger and to let her and her subjects abandon it. "Wait... your majesty, I need–"

The white rabbit interrupted Sora's interruption of the queen, by reminding the queen: "Your majesty, we're already backlogged on execution. There's the girl who beat you at croquet, and now that man who just stole your tarts. We simply don't have–"

"Then just throw him in the dungeon!" The queen bellowed, sending club-card soldiers rushing at Sora. Hard as Sora tried to fight, the cards refused to stay down for more than a few seconds. Several soldiers grabbed Sora's limbs, while another confiscated his weapons, and a last one clubbed him on the head, causing Sora's vision to go dark and stopping his struggle.

A musty smell woke Sora some time later, and instead of the garden's bright daylight; a dungeons dim torchlight greeted his eyes, a relief that he didn't have to adjust to the sun's harsh glare.

"So we meet again?" Cloud's flat voice called from a dark corner of the same cell. His blue eyes illuminated the room with an hitherto unnoticed light that spooked Sora.

Sora jumped back and hit his head on a stone wall. Rubbing it, he addressed Cloud. "So, what are you in here for?"

"Human weakness." his cell mate answered without actually giving any information. "You?"

"Painting roses, mouthing off to the queen." Sora shrugged, "Nothing interesting. She's really got a temper, doesn't she?"

Though Sora couldn't see the smirk in the shadows of the prison, he could hear the little 'Humph' of amusement that came with it. "That would be one way of wording it, I suppose."

Their conversation lulled, though the quiet that came with it was peaceful and natural unlike the time in the forest. Even now, Sora wasn't sure how to measure up the person sitting across from him in the cell and was still upset at the unconcern for friend or foe that he showed in the forest earlier, but now the youth wondered whether that made the man a bad person or just guarded after a time of fighting Heartless and maybe seeing his friends succumb to them. Regardless, Sora extended his natural friendliness and decided to give the man another chance.

Cloud had too apparently. "So what's a kid like you doing on a world like this anyway?"

What did Cloud know about the situation? Enough, if Sora's intuition were correct. "I'm here to save these people from the Heartless. You?"

"I'm searching for something." The non-answer didn't surprise Sora. Ever since he'd first shown up, Cloud had acted with the purpose of a man with one goal in mind, and he'd always been elusive with his conversation. "You're a little young to be doing this kind of job." That wasn't a question or even an opinion that could be debated, but rather a statement of fact.

When was sixteen young? Okay, so he wasn't as grown up as Cloud, or Aerith, or Cid or most of the other people that he'd met since he'd been taken from his island. "I'm skilled for my age."

"They must be getting desperate to send someone as young as you to do this dirty work." Another statement of fact, and one that hit home for Sora.

"They? I volunteered for it and proved myself!" _Because I want to find my friends and find out what happened to my world_, Sora added to himself. If Cloud would withhold important information from him, Sora would keep the more vulnerable crevices of himself hidden. That and the guilt that gnawed at him when he realized that he hadn't spent any time on this world actually looking for them. They weren't here anyway. He didn't know how he came to that conclusion, but he had this idea that he would just know if they were, in the same way that he knew that up was up and down was down.

Cloud acted like he didn't hear Sora's objection. "They think they can save everyone from the Heartless by bringing them to another world. They can't. They're just delaying the inevitable." It could have been Sora's imagination that heard the regret and bitterness in his usually apathetic tone, but he doubted it. "They know it too, so why do they just hang on?"

Saying nothing at first, because he was unsure whether Cloud really wanted a response, Sora nonetheless offered his answer. "Maybe they want something to hope for. If we can hang on long enough, maybe we can win. I know that wherever my friends are, I'd want them to have a chance to make it. Maybe they want the same thing."

"Perhaps." The dialogue ended there as they both realized the impasse they'd arrived at. A leaky faucet dripped at regular intervals with a beat that drove Sora crazy as he tried to ignore it and failed.

"That move back there, the one you did when we first met, how'd you do it?" Sora asked, just to get a reprieve from the drip-drip of water.

"You have to want it. You have to focus on just one goal and then pursue it with all you have. Then all you have to do is push off and go. No doubts. No moralizing." Oh, how Sora could hear the emphasis placed on the last word.

"I see." He didn't, not really, but he understood the message: If Sora wanted to succeed, if he wanted to see his friends safe and sound, then he'd have to get over some of his petty objections, objections that Sora didn't know if he could give up without a heaping pile of guilt.

The card-guards came then, effectively ending the conversation. "Quiet! The prisoners shall not talk to each other," one of them barked, before all of them marched off in unison.

Cloud stayed quiet and kept his head down until the sound of shuffling footsteps had faded. "We should get out of here." He mumbled to Sora, raising a metallic something in his hands that glinted in the dim dungeon light. A key?

"How... how did you get that?"

"I knew that I'd have to break someone out of prison today, just didn't think it'd be me. So I made sure I was prepared. Are you going to ask questions, or would you like to escape?" Somehow, Sora had no doubts that Cloud would leave him behind if Sora didn't answer correctly.

"Escape is good." Sora conceded.

Cloud didn't say anything but worked to open the tiny cell in which he and Sora were being kept. A few moments later, the rusty hinges gave a satisfying creak as the door swung open. They were free.

They were also weaponless, a condition that would be remedied in short time. Their weapons, Cloud's enormous sword and Sora's smaller one, were guarded by a single guard.

"I'll distract the guard while you get the weapons." Cloud instructed.

Cloud's distraction was nothing more than a well-timed blow to the head that caused the guard to slump unconscious on the dirty stone floor. Sora reclaimed his weapon easily but struggled with Cloud's heavier sword. Just more completely circumstantial evidence of how he was just a kid, Sora surmised as Cloud came and retrieved his sword, hefting the bandaged covered sword over his shoulder as if it were made of wood. Without another word, Cloud walked briskly towards the exit, leaving Sora once again to almost jog along to keep up with them.

More distractions were in store for the several other guards who intersected Sora's and Cloud's pathway, but eventually they made it to Cloud's apparent destination, a hedge-lined courtyard that was currently functioning as a court. They sneaked around until they found a good observation spot behind the hedges.

A bugle sounded, alerting Sora to the presence of the white rabbit and presumably the rest of the procession he had seen earlier in the rose garden. The sliver of view the hedge provided was generous, enough that Sora could see the whole of the proceedings.

"Court is now in session! All rise for Her Majesty, The Queen of Hearts." The rabbit announced for the benefit of the audience. All the guards and courtiers and any miscellaneous card people stood at attention as the same imperious boar of a queen who had confined him to prison for painting a rosebush entered the garden and took her place of honor at the front of the improvised courtroom. Everyone clapped very politely as her majesty sat on a throne a size or two too small for her.

"You may be seated," she decreed, and the court fell silent again.

The rabbit continued with the proceedings. "Today we hear the case of the croquet cheater. The defendant, a Miss Alice."

A red curtain by the Queen's stand revealed a cage and a blond-haired girl of no more than twelve trapped inside and looking very afraid of what waited for her, probably a beheading if observation meant anything on this world.

But before the beheading, the Queen had some speaking to do. "Ladies and Gentlemen, the defendant is accused of a grave crime, cheating at the civilized game of croquet against yours truly, the best croquet player in the kingdom. Does the defendant have anything to say in her defense?"

The frightened-looking Alice stood up straighter and put her hands on her hips, making her look not nearly so meek as Sora had believed she was when he first saw her. "Of course. I won that game fairly. Just because everyone loses to you on purpose does not make you the best player. Quite the opposite actually." Her speech finished, Alice brushed an imaginary crumb off her immaculate white apron.

For a moment, Sora could hear nothing in the court except for his and Cloud's breath. The queen's face drained of color before angry red refilled it. "What? You dare imply that you, a mere child, is better than me, the Queen of Hearts, in croquet?"

"Yes. I believe that is exactly what I'm implying." Alice said, in defiance of the queen.

"She's got a backbone." Cloud murmured. It was only Sora's imagination that made him think that Cloud sounded troubled by that revelation.

Sora agreed in a tone that was as quiet as Cloud's. "We should rescue her. It's not her fault that she won a game fair and square."

Their short conversation had distracted them from the rest of the evidence, as the Queen prepared the verdict. "The court finds the defendant guilty as charged for the crimes of cheating at croquet and defying my will. The sentence: Off with her–"

Not able to take the mock trial anymore, Sora stepped out of the bushes to make his presence known. Maybe it was his inner sense of justice that compelled him to stand up for the defense of a complete stranger, but more likely it was his growing frustration that a 'kid' or a 'child' was automatically inferior to anyone older than them, regardless of actual skill. Whatever motivated him to step forward, step forward he did, betraying his and Cloud's hiding spot.

Sora walked forward, sword at his side, until he was at the single witness stand provided at the trial. Instead of being at the side of the judge's podium, the witness stand was directly in front of it, putting Sora face to ugly face with the queen. Despite her frightening appearance Sora stared directly at her as he stood for himself, Alice, and anyone who had ever been underestimated, and at the same time he realized that this was probably the best time to explain to the queen what exactly was coming.

"Your majesty," Sora addressed the court while everyone was still shocked from his intrusion onto their playacting, "don't you have something better to do than put people on trial for winning a game?"

The queen stared down her nose at him as if his ideas were worthy to be put on the compost heap with the white roses. "What? Are you implying that there is something more important that preserving justice within this world?"

"Doesn't there have to be a world in order to preserve justice in it, and don't you and your subjects need to be alive in order to appreciate it?"

The Queen of Hearts looked slightly alarmed, but she shook it off like a dog shaking off the rain. "There is nothing at all threatening this world. You're stirring up mutiny, a very, very grave crime. So on Articles 29, 31, 84 through 982 and 1417 you are–"

"He's right." A voice came from behind Sora. Cloud had stepped up to the podium, sharing Sora's defiance of the queen. "Your world is on the verge of being destroyed, and all you can do is execute people for minor infractions. I don't know why he's even bothering with trying to save you."

The red-faced queen turned a deeper shade of scarlet. "You! You!" She sputtered incoherently for a few minutes, completely at lost. At the unfortunate minute that she regained her composure, she shouted orders to all the guards, "Seize them!"

The courtyard around them changed. Except for the hedges that bordered the perimeter of the courtyard and made it impossible for Sora and Cloud to escape, every thing else from the witness stand they had previously stood on, to the spectators and their chairs, to the bailiff's platform sank into the ground, leaving only the Queen's dias and Alice's cage from the original set up.

Not that he had time to pay attention to that stuff, Sora remembered as a card jumped him and Cloud narrowly managed to cut the card in half before the card could split Sora. So he concentrated on the fight instead of the scenery. As they had in the rose garden, the card-warriors did not stay down for very long, although with two people fighting, it remained a manageable fight. While the cards couldn't get in a hit, neither could Sora and Cloud deplete their numbers and actually win.

"The tower!" Cloud shouted to Sora over the roar of the battle. Complete nonsense, Sora thought at first until he noticed that there was a small tower smack dab in the middle of the battlefield. Since Cloud was being so nice as to hold off the cards, Sora allowed himself the luxury of rubbing his injured nose from where he bumped into the stone structure.

How was he supposed to destroy this thing? He looked at the structure. The wooden gears sticking out from the ends would be a good place to start and he wouldn't have to try to cut through solid stone–at least not right away.

One gear broke easily, and so did one of its brothers, but by the time that he worked on getting the third one destroyed, the cards had started to slip through Cloud and made their way to Sora. He shook them off the best he could, although he couldn't concentrate that much on them. Unlike the Heartless, if one of them slipped through, they'd simply use their mostly ceremonial weapons to scratch up Sora before retreating to safety. After the third gear was destroyed and Sora started to show the tears from all the dull blades being stabbed in his direction, the tower fell and the chaotic melee gave way to ordered retreat.

Sora paused to take a breath. Falling back, the cards too, stopped to collect themselves. When he'd fortified his eyes, Sora looked up at the queen who had become sickly pale again.

"See what you've done!" She said in a rage that was probably the only quiet thing her highness possessed. The queen pointed to the cage next to her. Instead of a meek and afraid, but somehow defiant Alice behind the bars, the empty cage mocked them all with its door swinging free on its hinges.

Cloud had also left, Sora noticed, though he didn't bring that up to the queen. Good, so he'd obviously managed to help Alice escape while Sora had attacked the tower. Something prevented him from enjoying his little victory– something completely black except for the yellow eyes that glowed even in the daylight.

"Your Highness," Sora addressed the queen with as much respect as he could muster for a lunatic, "You and your subjects need to leave this world. Now."

The queen didn't even have a chance to protest, because at that moment Shadows swarmed from all sides of the area, and quickly turned the green field into a black sea of Heartless.

"Oh my..." was all the queen could manage. Apparently, she now saw the seriousness of the situation. Unfortunately, the seriousness of the situation was staring back at her.

* * *

Author's Notes: The second of the old parts that needed posting. When I do continue this, expect a change of style from this way-back-when stuff for everything after this is going to be all new. For better or worse, I don't know. Thanks to anyone still reading/supporting this. 


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